Pulse
by hoggle75
Summary: A childhood romance sparks a prophecy involving the Greek Goddess of Love and two of Earth's Greatest Heroes. Will love prevail? - OC/Oliver Queen, OC/Bruce Wayne, Tommy/Laurel; I own nothing in the Arrow/DC Universes. Orig. Character not based on any person/place/thing.
1. Chapter 1 - HOGGLE

Chapter One - HOGGLE

October 1994

Keiran Flannery was 8 years old when she moved away from Gotham City. Her mother, Raisa, had been offered a job as a housekeeper for a very rich and influential family in Starling City. Raisa, was nervous about making her daughter move, but Keiran wasn't. She couldn't wait to leave. Gotham City didn't feel like home anymore.

Keiran had suffered from severe migraines since the age of 3. A few times a week, her head hurt so badly that she couldn't get out of bed. Her mother and father called them 'heavy head' days. She couldn't go to school consistently like normal kids, so she was homeschooled by her mother. Kids were afraid of her and wouldn't talk to her when she had her big, dark and bulky light-sensitivity glasses on all the time. They helped with lessening the migraines, but made her look weird and robotic. When she wore them, which was almost every time she left the house, people assumed she was blind. And although many stared because they thought she couldn't see them, for the most part, people ignored her when she had them on.

She rarely complained or cried about her migraines. Nor did she feel sorry for herself. Her parents raised her to appreciate life and the world around her. For the most part, she liked to have people not paying attention to her. It meant that she could observe the world around her in great detail, especially on the days when her head wasn't hurting. She even found a short stick on a walk through the park with her father one day that was tall enough to be made into a walking cane, even though she didn't need it. They took it home, sanded it down and painted it bright pink with dark purple hearts. It made her laugh, how colorful it was.

The one and only time Keiran remembered truly feeling pity for herself was when she was 5. She was having the worst migraine pains in her young life. The pain was so strong, she couldn't stop crying, or keep her eyes open for more than a few minutes. Her father sat with her on his lap and told her that she was stronger than she could ever understand. He told her that her body was made of invisible steel and that was why her head would hurt her sometimes. Her body was working to get stronger to remove the pain from her mind. He knew her migraines wouldn't last forever and he needed her to believe that too.

While they were sitting together, he took out a necklace. It had a long, delicate silver chain with a large, violet stone hanging from it that he called an Amethyst. It was as big as the pit of a peach and surrounded by clear, tiny stones. As he put it over her head, telling her to keep it close, he told her that it had been given to him by his mother to be handed down to his child one day. Keiran thought the stone would feel heavy, but it felt like nothing at all. It was warm to the touch, which surprised her, and comforted her.

They sat still together for a while and he reminded her to focus on her other senses. He reminded her to work on patience, concentration and stillness. He said this was important for her to learn and control as it was going to be something she would need as she got older. 'You need to be disciplined.' He said.

Then he smiled down at her and listened as she worked on blocking out the pain and describing the noise from the taxis honking fifteen floors below, the smell of the garlic her mother was chopping in the kitchen, the feel of the stone on her chest – pulsing like her heartbeat. She though he would laugh at her when she told him how the stone felt. He didn't. He never laughed at anything she ever said to him when they were working together. It became their routine to practice every day when he came home from work.

Six months ago, on a day when she had no headaches, her mother was preparing dinner and Keiran was working through her yoga positions from the class her mother had enrolled her. It had been a good day. She had worked through her lessons with her mother that morning in record speed and then she had gone to yoga class where her instructor had praised her rapid improvement in the positions and forms. The instructor was encouraging Keiran to move up to the intermediate class after only two months.

From the den, Keiran heard a knock at the front door, and her mother walk over to answer it. A few moments later she heard her mother start sobbing. A Gotham City police detective was at the door and was telling her mother that there had been a bank robbery. The criminals had taken the police on a high-speed chase in their attempt to get away. The chase had gone through very congested areas. Her father had been waiting to make a turn with his limousine and couldn't get out of the way of the bank robbers. They crashed headlong into him and the crash had killed her father on impact.

Keiran had known the instant her father died. She had been waiting for her mother at the yoga studio and then, suddenly, she was standing on the street, in front of the accident. She could smell the scraped, burnt metal, feel the tension in the crowd of police around her. The robbers were climbing out of their car with their hands up. Then everything around her stopped moving, even the air. Her father appeared before her, clear as day, surrounded by a light blue haze.

He told her that he loved her and her mother and to not be scared. He said that someday, she would understand. He told her that he was sorry he wouldn't be there to help her, but that he would never truly be gone from her. He said 'There is real magic,' then he smiled and disappeared.

She blinked and was standing back in the yoga studio. Her mother was walking in to pick her up. She put her glasses on to hide any worry in her eyes, but she didn't tell her mother what she had seen. When her mother asked her what was wrong, Keiran told her that she was just working her way through a bit of a migraine that had come on suddenly. Her mother squeezed her hand and told her they would be home soon.

After the police detective left, Keiran sat with her mother in their small kitchen and cried for the second time in her life.

It was another 'heavy head' day as Raisa and Keiran arrived in Starling City. A driver was waiting for them at the airport. He spoke Russian to her mother to put her at ease. Keiran didn't understand what he said, but she appreciated the stranger trying to make her mother comfortable. Raisa had been through too much recently and could use a little kindness.

She was carrying her pink and purple walking stick, although it was starting to get a little short for her. She couldn't part with it. It still made her feel close to her father whenever she held the painted stick. She would never forget his lessons. She continued to practice seeing the world through all of her senses. Now, before entering any new environment, she like to take a moment to explore the area with her eyes closed, concentrating on her other senses for support.

Keiran closed her eyes and let the scents and sounds of the bustling airport surround her before she started to follow after her mother. She heard the clacking of the keyboards at the terminals, the smell of coffee brewing from kiosks and hushed, private conversations - one of which made her blush.

When she opened her eyes, she was also seeing something else. Shortly after her father had passed away, Keiran had begun to notice colors in the air surrounding people as she passed them on the street. It didn't happen all the time, but it was becoming more and more frequent. It didn't make her nervous, or scared. She didn't know why, but it made her happy. Her headaches seemed to be less painful when she noticed the colors in the air.

She knew that other people couldn't see it when she had asked her mother about it one day and received a puzzled look in return. So, she went to the library to research if there had ever been something like this in the world, or if she was the first. That was when she found out about Auras and how everyone had a color that represented them, but rarely could they be seen. When she left the library that day, she had skipped home, twirling her pink and purple stick, not even needing her dark glasses to make the journey.

She smiled as she thought about her 'secret' during the short drive across Starling City to their new home. As they turned into the drive, even with her heavy glasses on, Keiran could tell that this was different than any place she had ever been. The driveway was long and curved, with a large circle drive in front of the big mansion entryway.

The mansion itself was more like a giant castle from a fairytale her mother would read to her. When she stepped out of the car, she closed her eyes again. A light rain was starting to fall and the world around her smelled of fresh mowed grass. She could hear hummingbirds in the distance.

A family walked out of the house to greet them. A tall, blonde man was standing next to a blonde woman who was holding the hand of a blonde boy about her age. The woman also had a bump where her belly was. Raisa had told Keiran that the woman was pregnant and expecting a baby.

Keiran saw their auras as they walked up to them. The man was surrounded in a dark blue color, while the woman had deep, dark pink colors swirling around her. Everywhere but her stomach, which glowed with a pure white light. The little boy was surrounded in a deep, forest green. The three people stepped forward together to greet her and her mother.

Keiran smiled and a tremor went through her as her father appeared in front of her, but no one else seemed to see him.

'Your journey starts here,' he said. 'It will not be easy, and for that I am sorry dear heart. Someday you will see the light, I promise you.'

The blonde man moved towards her mother and greeted her with a welcoming smile that didn't quite reach his eyes as he shook her hand. Her mother had told her that his name was Robert Queen. The tall blonde woman stepped forward with the little boy to greet her mother warmly and then turned towards Keiran.

'Hello Keiran! My name is Moira, and this is Oliver.' She said. Moira nudged Oliver forward, 'Say hello, Oliver.'

The little boy took a step forward, looking at her funny glasses and the big purple stone around her neck, but stuck his hand out stiffly for her to shake, shyly glancing at his father, almost like he was checking to see if Robert was noticing him copying his movements. Keiran took his hand and the world around her exploded in bursts of dark violet and deep green as she fell to the ground, seeing images of stormy oceans and wild forests, violent earthquakes, men with orange and black masks on, swords, fighting staffs, bows and arrows. Thousands of images, none of them familiar to her, streaked through her vision. She was surrounded by the smell of the sea, burning wood and blood. Her head exploded in blinding pain.

She felt like she was frozen in time. She started to fall backwards and looked up to where she had seen her father, but he was no longer there. She felt her walking stick buckle and heard a loud snap. Then the world was going black.

Oliver Queen had never seen anything as peculiar as the little girl who got out of the car with their new housekeeper. He tried so hard not to stare at her, but he was intrigued. She was small with pale skin and frizzy light blonde hair. She wore big, boxy, dark sunglasses, a long silver necklace with a big purple stone and she carried bright pink cane covered with purple hearts! He snorted and would have outright laughed if his father hadn't given him the look which he always gave Oliver when Oliver was in trouble. He really didn't want his father to tell him he was disappointed in him again, so he stifled his laugh and stood as still as he could.

He watched the little girl while his parents spoke to their new housekeeper, Raisa. He was fascinated by her glasses because he couldn't see her eyes. He heard Raisa tell his mother that the little girl's name was Keiran, which made him smile, but he didn't know why. He just liked the way the name sounded.

His mother took his hand and they stepped towards Keiran. 'Hello Keiran! My name is Moira, and this is Oliver.' She said. Then she pushed him forward. He quickly glanced at his father, who he knew was watching him, then stood up straight and stuck his hand out, just like his dad always did. His mother said, 'Say hello Oliver.'

The moment he touched the girl's hand, he felt the oddest sensation go through him. It was warm and tingling and safe, almost like how he felt when he came home after a bad day at school, or how he felt when he ran up to his father to welcome him back from a long trip. It was comforting. And he knew it was stupid, but he swore he saw a flicker of green and purple around Keiran before she let go of his hand and collapsed on the ground.

Oliver had never felt this bad in his life. When Keiran had fallen to the ground, she hadn't made a sound. She had crumbed into a heap of blonde hair, pale skin and purple stone. Her funny-colored walking stick snapped in two and fell beside her. His father had picked her up and rushed her into their living room, while Raisa and his mother trailed behind him. Raisa apologized over and over again for the situation, but his parents kept reassuring her that they understood and then helped her move Keiran to their housekeeper's living quarters. They asked if Raisa would like a doctor to come to the house, but Raisa said no. She said Keiran would be fine after some rest.

His parents had told him that their new housekeeper's daughter suffered from really bad headaches called migraines, but he hadn't expected her to collapse like that after meeting him. He kept thinking it was his fault as he sat alone in his bedroom. He felt like he needed to do something. He didn't even know Keiran, and yet all he wanted was to make her feel better. It hurt him that she was hurting and he didn't know what to do about that. Which he thought was weird and normal at the same time. He was halfway downstairs and outside before he realized what he was doing.

He found the broken pink stick that Keiran had been carrying. He took it to the tool shed out behind the servant's housing and found the gardener there. He asked Gary if there was any way to repair the walking stick. Gary looked at it and brought Oliver to where he kept wood repair tools and supplies. He handed Oliver a piece of sandpaper and explained that he would need to sand the place where the stick was broken until it was smooth and would fit well together again. Then they could put it back together.

Oliver worked for an hour on the sanding until he had managed to make it so both pieces would fit together again smoothly. Gary helped him put wood glue on the broken area and they put the two pieces together and set it in a vice grip on the workbench so that it could dry overnight.

The next day was Saturday morning and his parents usually slept in and let him sleep late as well. However, Oliver woke up as soon as the sun started streaming through his window curtains. He brushed his teeth and got dressed and went downstairs. He found Raisa in the kitchen, taking a batch of fresh blueberry muffins out of the oven. The kitchen had never smelled this good before and he started to feel a little better than he had since the incident yesterday.

'Good Morning, Mr. Oliver' Raisa said in her slightly accented voice. 'Would you like something for breakfast this morning?'

'Yes, please, Miss Raisa,' Oliver said. He sat at the counter of the large kitchen island and she brought him a plate with a muffin on it, a banana sliced up, a few apple slices, along with a glass of milk and a glass of orange juice. He smiled, thanked her and started to eat his breakfast. As he ate, he watched as she worked around the kitchen, moving things here and there, where it seemed that the items worked better for her. As she continued to work, he started to feel a sense of calm come over the room. This was good because he wanted to ask her something.

'Miss Raisa,' Oliver asked, 'would it be ok if I visited Keiran today?'

Raisa turned to look at him for a moment, a small look of worry across her face. 'You don't have to do that Mister Oliver. Keiran is ok. It was not your fault, she just had a little fall. Sometimes after an…episode, like the one she had yesterday, she just needs to rest and she will be ok.'

'Miss Raisa, please…I…feel bad that her first day here wasn't any fun and, well, Gary is helping me fix her walking stick, so when it's done, could I please visit her and bring it to her?' Oliver asked again.

Raisa couldn't help but smile at the little boy who was showing more concern for her daughter than any other child had before in Keiran's life. She looked at Oliver and said, 'Mister Oliver, you have a good heart. You may visit Keiran any time you like. Thank you for wanting to help her. You are a good boy.'

Oliver stood up a little straighter and blushed. He looked at Raisa and smiled and nodded. He'd never been told that he had a good heart before, but he liked how it made him feel when Raisa said that. He finished his breakfast and got up and brought his dishes to the sink. He heard his parents starting to move around upstairs and headed to the Garden shed before they started to look for him. He needed to finish his project.

Tommy Merlyn found him in the shed three hours later as he was finishing painting the walking stick. Gary had helped him find the paint and had shown him how to sand the top coat of paint off the stick before applying the new color. He repainted the entire stick white, thinking that was more normal for the little girl, especially when she went to school. He knew how mean the other kids could be and didn't want them to have another thing to tease her about on top of her bulky dark glasses.

But, he remembered the bright pink and the purple hearts and thought maybe painting it all white was not what she wanted. He found some pink and dark purple paint and added small swirls and thin stripes to the stick. When he was done, he turned to Tommy, who had a very perplexed look on his face.

'What do you think?' Oliver asked.

'About what?' Tommy said.

'The walking stick…Miss Raisa, the new housekeeper, has a little girl named Keiran. She's kinda weird looking – she has these really big dark glasses that make her head look huge, but she's like, tiny. And, well, yesterday, when she was shaking my hand, she just fell down and her walking stick broke. I felt bad, so I fixed it for her. So, what do you think?'

Tommy looked at the walking stick. 'Well, since you broke it, it's probably a good thing you fixed it! And, I guess since it's a girl's, white and pink and purple would work…'

'Good. I'm going to bring it over to her. Do you want to come with me? Or do you want to hang out in my room until I'm done?'

'Yeah, staying alone in your room sounds like so much fun…thinking the new weird girl sounds more interesting at least.' Tommy said.

Oliver looked at Tommy and frowned a little. 'Tommy, you have to be nice though. Keiran is…different. Something weird happened when she held my hand yesterday, but I don't know what. I just know that I feel like it was my fault that she fell down and got hurt. So, be nice, ok? I don't want Raisa to be mad at me. She told me that I had a good heart.'

Tommy started to laugh. 'Oliver has a good heart…' he called in a singsong voice. Oliver hit him lightly, but smiled at his friend's teasing.

'Come on,' said Oliver. And they headed towards the housekeepers quarters.

Keiran heard Oliver and Tommy coming up the walk a long time before they arrived at the door. She caught the faint scent of the sea and woodsmoke again as they walked up the path. She opened the door off the kitchen before they came around the corner, but she didn't smile or say anything. Since she had fallen yesterday, she had felt very odd. She didn't feel like herself. Her head hadn't hurt at all this morning and she hadn't felt the need for her glasses today. Her colors were out again, though, because Oliver was still surrounded in the green shade from the day before and Tommy was surrounded in the same light blue that she always saw around her dad.

Oliver looked at her and stared. Without her glasses on, she looked different. She was even smaller looking. Her face was pixieish, fitting her small form, and there were small freckles cross her button nose. But it was her eyes that surprised him the most. They were round in shape, the irises a very light purple color, so light that they almost seemed to glow. He felt like if he stared into them for too long he could get lost.

He shook his head and smiled. 'Hi,' he said, 'I wasn't sure if you'd be up and around today…this is my best friend, Tommy Merlyn.' He nodded to Tommy.

'Where are your glasses?' asked Tommy. Oliver hit him in the shoulder. Keiran stared at them for a minute and then started to giggle.

'Hi Tommy, I'm Keiran. I don't need my glasses today, but I can show them to you if you want…' she said.

'I have something for you' Oliver said quickly, before Tommy could say something stupid again. He brought the repaired walking stick out from behind his back and held it out to her.

She held her hand out slowly, almost like she was afraid to touch him again, but when she took it from him, she smiled and blushed.

'You repainted it,' she said. She sounded almost pleased.

'Yeah,' said Oliver. 'When I put the pieces back together, the paint had chipped and been sanded in a few places, so it didn't match. I thought this would be ok.'

'I knew you would like it. I told him that too!' said Tommy, grinning at Keiran and then Oliver. Oliver shoved Tommy and started laughing, Keiran following shortly with another small giggle that made him smile harder.

It was starting to rain again, so Oliver thought they should probably let Keiran go back inside. 'I guess we should be going.' He said. 'See you later?'

'Have you ever seen Labyrinth?' Keiran asked.

'Nope,' said Tommy. 'What's Labyrinth?'

'It's a movie about magic and make-believe and goblins and trolls and, well, I was going to watch it since my head wasn't hurting me so much today. It's my favorite movie. And…um…' she hesitated, and then said very quickly 'Wouldyouguysliketowatchitwithme?

Oliver and Tommy stayed to watch the movie. When it was over, they thought it had been pretty good for a girly movie.

'I mean, the whole ballroom thing – that is really boring,' said Tommy.

'I hate dancing,' chimed in Oliver.

'That's only a small part. I saw you guys when you got totally grossed out by the Bog of Eternal Stench. And, Tommy, you said you wanted to buy a dog so that you could call him Sir Didymus!' giggled Keiran.

Oliver felt warmth spread through his chest at her giggle. 'What is your favorite part of the movie?' he asked her.

'That's easy. It's Hoggle' she replied.

'What?' Tommy asked in total surprise. 'How can you say that?'

'Yeah,' agreed Oliver. 'He betrays Sarah. He's the whole reason she gets stuck in that ballroom scene!'

She laughed again and he smiled. He really liked that sound.

'I know that,' she said simply, 'But, in the end, he chooses to do the right thing. That reminds me of my dad. He always said choose to do the right thing. Always try to help others. Be good. When he…died last Spring…I watched this movie and Hoggle, well, I just felt like it was my dad reminding me what he taught me. '

She watched them, not sure of what they would say. She didn't know why she said anything about that. Except…well, for the first time she didn't feel like she was invisible, and she realized she liked that. They had been nice to her. Oliver had fixed her walking stick. They had both stayed to watch her favorite movie. Maybe, for the first time, she was making friends.

'My mom died a couple of years ago.' Tommy said quietly. 'It sucks. But, I remember that she used to do a lot to help people too. So, maybe Hoggle isn't such a bad character…' Tommy smiled at her.

'Maybe not…but, I still can't forgive him for giving her the peach and the ballroom scene.' Oliver said.

Keiran laughed. 'I'll convince you someday.'

'We should probably get back to the house Oliver,' Tommy said. 'I'm not sure if my dad is coming to pick me up, or if it's just a driver again…do you think maybe your Mom would let me stay over?'

'Yeah, probably' Oliver said. 'Let's go find her so she can call.'

Keiran walked them to the door. The rain had stopped and the setting sun was starting to peak out. Her eyes and head still hadn't started to bother her. 'Would you maybe want to come by again and watch movies…or something?' She looked at the two boys, trying not to show too much hope on her face.

Tommy and Oliver looked at each other and then turned to grin at her.

'We get to pick the movie next time.' Tommy said. 'Or maybe you can come up and check out Oliver's comic book collection. He collects X-Men, Fantastic Four, The Avengers…'

'You collect comic books?' Keiran asks.

'So?' Oliver challenges her, staring straight into her eyes.

'Nothing,' says Keira, staring right back at him with her glowing, purple eyes, 'I collect Dazzler comics…I know she doesn't have the coolest power…I just like her.'

Oliver looks at her and grins. 'Well, it's a start. See you later…Hoggle.'

Keiran waves goodbye and closes the door. For the very first time in her life, she hung out with kids her own age. No headaches. No glasses. Just a normal afternoon with two boys watching a movie and talking about things they have fun with.


	2. Chapter 2 - AS YOU WISH

Chapter 2 – AS YOU WISH

September 2007

Tommy Merlyn dialed his phone as he started his car and prayed that she picked up.

'Hello?'

'Keiran? Hey, hi…how's your day?' he asks, hoping she doesn't notice the bit of tension in his voice.

She sighs, 'What did he do now, Merlyn?'

'Nothing,' he says, his voice raising a little. 'I swear. I'm actually trying to keep him from…'

'Hang up the phone Tommy,' Oliver says from the seat next to him, his voice annoyed.

'…doing anything stupid,' Tommy continues. 'But, I have dinner with my father in an hour and I don't think Ollie would be good company. For anybody. Or anything.' He finishes.

'I don't need a babysitter' Oliver yells at him.

'And, so it's my turn to be Oliver's better judgement?' she asks.

'C'mon, Hoggle,' he pleads. 'I know you're in the middle of packing, but…I mean…he could really use your help. Laurel…'

'Don't tell her. She doesn't care!' Oliver slurs angrily at him.

'…dumped him.' Tommy tells her.

She sighs again. 'Ok, how drunk is he? Is he pretending-to-be-Tom-Cruise-from-Risky-Business-drunk, or I'm-King-Kong-tearing-planes-out-of-the-sky-drunk?

He smiled. She was going to do it. Whenever her scale of behavior became movie references, he knew that she would agree. 'Joe Pesci in Goodfellas. I wouldn't call Ollie a clown if I were you,' he laughs.

Oliver sat next to him, arms folded, mimicking his laughter. Big baby, Tommy thought to himself.

She laughs too. 'Ok. How long do I have to prepare?'

'20 minutes. We just got in the car,' he says.

'Assumed I'd say yes, that was risky Merlyn,' she scolds him playfully. 'Bring him up to his room through the kitchen. My mother's there – the Queens are having a small dinner party, probably would prefer not to have a scene. Mom will make sure that they don't see him coming through. I'll give her the heads up.'

'Thanks, Keiran. You really are the best.' He meant it too.

She laughs, a little on the evil side he thought. 'This isn't free Tommy, you know that. You now owe me, again. Upon your first visit to me in Gotham, you will get decked out and take me to the nicest restaurant in town to celebrate, once again, how wonderful I am…and how many times I've saved your damn hide.' And she hung up.

He laughs, hangs up his phone and puts it in his pocket. He would've taken her out anyway and she knew it. He and McKenna had started planning their visit the moment she had announced her new job: Jr. Personal Assistant to Lucius Fox, newly named Acting CEO to Wayne Enterprises. They were so proud of her. Even Oliver, though right now, he would never admit it, Tommy thought, glancing at his best friend.

He knew Oliver was proud of their oldest friend. Tommy knew his friend well enough to have seen the pride shining in his eyes when she'd announced her new job. Seconds later, he'd also seen when the realization had sunk in that this would mean her moving to Gotham City. Permanently. Forcing Oliver to be faced with a day-to-day life without the girl he'd been in love with for years, right next door.

When she'd applied for and earned her internship the previous spring, it had resulted in her having to spend her final semester of Starling University, in Gotham, working under Lucius Fox, conducting research in the Applied Sciences division of Wayne Enterprises. She hadn't really been interested in the science, but the man himself. She found him, and the work that Thomas Wayne had tried to accomplish, fascinating. She was eager to find ways for corporations to integrate more charitable projects geared toward the communities surrounding them, into their long-term corporate goals. Thomas Wayne had tried to do that, and might have changed his city had he not been killed.

The science hadn't intimidated her thought. She'd done her own research on some of the projects patented under the division while preparing for her interview. She'd proven to be extremely competent during questioning, highly organized and with a stack of impressive references, Robert Queen and Malcolm Merlyn among them. Keiran had been smart enough to intern in the mailrooms and secretarial pools of both companies – Queen Consolidated in high school and Merlyn Global while she attended Starling University. She had also been smart enough not to mention her applications to either of the CEO's when she applied to their companies so as to avoid any image of favoritism due to her friendships with their sons. She'd earned those recommendations through her hard work.

Oliver understood all that, Tommy knew. He'd mentioned how proud he was of all the work Keiran had done throughout her life. And she'd prepared for everything, except for how her best friend would react to her leaving. When the realization that she would be gone for 4 months starting right after New Year's had finally sunk into Oliver's brain last winter, he'd stopped talking to her for the 3 days before she left. He'd finally come to his senses and had gone with Tommy to drive her to the airport, apologizing for his behavior. He'd hugged her for a very long time before he'd finally let her go so she could make her way through the security gates. They'd stayed at the airport until her plane had taken off safely.

Tommy wondered if Oliver even knew how he felt about Keiran. There wasn't anything …unusual in how they acted around each other, he thought. They'd both dated other people in their lives. Oliver had begun dating Laurel seriously at the beginning of their senior year of high school, but he'd had numerous girlfriends before that. Keiran had dated Jace Branson, a son from a prominent family in Starling, for most of their high school years, until the idiot had dumped her at the end of their senior year. Funny thing was, she wasn't all that upset when that had happened. It had almost been like she'd known he was going to break up with her.

She had a lot of moments like that, yet somehow seemed oblivious to the way Oliver looked at her, especially when she went out with other men. Or came home from running. Or went out clubbing with McKenna. Or just sitting watching movies with them on Sunday nights. They weren't long looks, but Tommy saw them. He wondered how both Keiran and Laurel missed them. Every once in a while, he saw a puzzled look cross her face, but it didn't stay there long.

'Why did you call her? I don't want to see her.' Oliver suddenly burst out, angrily.

'Ollie, she's leaving in less than a week. Stop being such a jackass and tell her how you feel.' Tommy hadn't meant to say that, but maybe Oliver finally needed to hear it.

'You…have no idea what you're talking about…' Oliver mumbled, folding his arms again and turning to look out the window.

Tommy just smiled and enjoyed the silence for the rest of the ride.

Keiran Flannery sealed up the last box of books she'd been packing up. She was almost done, mostly having her clothes and things she used every day, like her iPod, her alarm clock and her health and beauty items left to pack. She put the packing tape gun on top of the box and headed out of her bedroom.

She went downstairs to the cottage's small kitchen. She looked at the clock, 6:30. She rubbed her hand over her face. If Oliver was in one of his moods, it could be a long night. He and Laurel had been together for 5 years. He'd just been kicked out of school again. Plus, he was irritated with her, just like he'd been at New Year's. She knew he was happy that she had this job opportunity in front of her, but he acted like he would never see her again, pushing her away, almost like it was easier to think she was already gone. Then he wouldn't actually have to say good bye to her. Stupid boy, she thought.

She washed her hands in the kitchen sink and dried them on a small towel next to the stove. She saw the container of cookies she had made with her mother last night sitting on the counter. She walked over to the fridge, opened it and took out two bottles of diet Dr. Pepper and a bottle of water. Closing the fridge, she turned, grabbed the container of cookies and walked out her kitchen door.

She crossed the grounds quickly in her bare feet, the grass cool underneath them. Damn, she'd meant to grab her sandals. She wiped her feet carefully on the mat outside the kitchen door to the mansion, opened the door and let herself in. She walked over to her mother and made her request to help Oliver up the back stairs. She told him how Laurel had broken up with him when she saw the disappointed look in her mother's eyes. Her mother didn't like the way Oliver turned to alcohol so often when he was in pain. Raisa still thought of Oliver as the little boy who had shown kindness to her child, a child that had so often been alone. To her, Oliver would always have a heart that was true and good. When he acted like this, Raisa felt he was masking his own fear that he didn't deserve to be loved and that he would end up alone. Keiran often thought Raisa was right.

Raisa also knew that her daughter was in love with the boy who had befriended her when they'd arrived at the estate of her new job all those years ago. Keiran had never been brave enough to confront her own hopes and dreams about the golden haired boy with the intense blue eyes who lived 100 feet from her. When Jace had broken up with her at the end of her senior year, her mother had sat her down and asked her why she didn't seem more disappointed. Jace had been a nice boy and they had dated for a while. Raisa had then asked Keiran if she had loved Jace. She'd surprised herself when she answered no. She and Jace had said they loved each other, but she'd suddenly realized she had only said it back to him because it had seemed important to him that she did. She had cared for Jace a great deal, but hadn't loved him. She had felt ashamed.

Her mother had taken her hands then and asked her to search her heart to see if there was someone that she loved. Something Jace had said struck her. 'Go running to Queen. You know it's what he wants. It's what you want too. Why don't you just admit it!' he'd yelled at her. She hadn't questioned it at the time. There had always been gossip about the friendship she shared with Oliver and Tommy being more than just friendship. But, she'd thought that there'd never been any truth to it. Now, opening herself to consider her mother's question, she realized that Jace's statement had been half true. She had feelings for Oliver Queen.

Her mind returned to the present and she saw her mother looking at her questioningly and she shook her head. She kissed her mother on the cheek, smiling at the bright turquoise color of her mother's aura. It never changed. Every day it was turquoise, bright and clear. It was comforting to her, it was her one constant, the only aura that never altered in any way. She smiled again as she turned and ran up the back stairs two at a time.

She'd outgrown her migraines by the time she was 10. Almost immediately after her birthday, they had completely disappeared. At the same time, her stone had…altered. It seemed to become a deeper purple color, and the tiny clear stones seemed to be tinged in pink. It always seemed to stay warm against her skin, regardless of her temperature, but now it seemed to throb with heat, almost in time to her heartbeat.

Auras were everywhere now too. Every person, every day, was surrounded by color. It made for very interesting days, seeing rainbows everywhere she looked. She felt fortunate that her father had taught her to utilize her other senses, as there were some days the colors could be distracting. Her other senses forced her to remain focused on those days.

She'd also decided when the migraines were gone that she wanted to be as active as possible so that she could have a strong body. She'd starting running distances, as far as she could for as long as her body would allow her, all along the Queen estate. She'd continued her yoga, which she still practiced 2-3 times a week. But, it had been McKenna Hall who had convinced her to learn how to fight, to defend herself.

She smiled, remembering that, as she walked into Ollie's room. She'd decided she wanted to go to school with other kids right before her 13th birthday. She loved her mother, but homeschooling was starting to feel limited. She wanted to be around kids her own age and her mother could only tutor her at night, so it also gave her limited her time to spend with Oliver and Tommy.

Her mother had agreed to let her enroll in a public school. But, Keiran had other ideas. She'd found out the requirements for placement testing at Ollie and Tommy's private school and what scores where needed for a scholarship. She called and requested the required paperwork to apply to the school and the scholarship. She was a year younger than her boys, so she thought that if she started applying and testing now as the two of them were beginning their freshman year, she'd definitely be able to get the scores in time to start her freshman year the following fall.

For six weeks straight, she'd studied harder than she had in her whole life. On the day of her test appointment, she got in the car with Ollie and went to school with him that day, like it was just a normal day. He asked her what she was doing and she told him that she had an appointment to go to and she'd meet him this afternoon to go home with him. She wouldn't say anything else, no matter how hard he tried to get her to talk. She was too nervous.

Her test scores had been well above the needed levels for entrance, and to qualify for the scholarship. She'd done so well, the school's administration wanted her to matriculate with the incoming freshman class in the fall. When she'd told the boys the news, they'd been proud of her, but she could tell that they wished she'd told them of her plans. She knew they would have tried to help her and she wouldn't have had to do it alone. She'd kissed them both on the cheek and thanked them, but had let them know that sometimes she was going to have to do things on her own. At their slightly disappointed looks in hearing that, she'd also told them it was easier to do those things knowing she had her two best friends always in her corner to support her. They'd smiled at her then, comforted that she would still need them.

She did need them and felt she always would. It wasn't until she started school and met McKenna Hall that she'd realized how much she'd been missing a girl as a friend in her life. Although Keiran no longer had migraines and had to wear bulky glasses, she didn't have a lot of sense of what it was like to be a teenage girl who had another teenage girl to confide in and to do, well, girly things. Thinking back, she had to admit to herself, she was a little on the nerdy side with her long uniform skirts, ankle socks and plain, black flats.

She'd been trying to find her locker on their first day at school when a very tough, Junior girl, had decided that Keiran was her freshman 'target of the day.' Keiran was quick, but she wasn't strong and the girl had managed to get a hand on her and push her up against the locker. McKenna Hall, had the locker next to Keiran's and was also on scholarship, but McKenna had grown up in a much tougher neighborhood. Surrounded in a fiery bright orange aura, McKenna had grabbed the girl's arm that wasn't holding onto Keiran and had twisted up behind the girl's back until she forced the girl to let Keiran go. The older girl had released her and walked away muttering threats. McKenna hadn't cared, just stared the girl down. She had thanked McKenna, who'd shrugged and then turned to walk away, when she saw the Limp Bizkit cd on the shelf in Keiran's locker. McKenna had been stunned that she listened to that kind of music, considering she really did look like a goody-goody. She told McKenna she just liked music. McKenna respected that. They were friends immediately after that, she remembered, walking over to Ollie's dresser and turning on the lights and his iPod.

McKenna had helped Keiran take a different outlook to her school uniforms. Her skirts became shorter. Tights and ankle socks were replaced with bare legs or legs covered in thigh-high stockings. Flats became heeled Mary Janes or strappy sandals. Oxford blouses weren't a size larger than necessary and buttoned to the top, instead they were fitted and worn with a couple of buttons open. Wearing a uniform didn't mean you couldn't look cute and stylish. You just had to know how far to bend the regulation without getting in trouble.

McKenna also took her to boxing lessons, teaching her to defend herself. So, Keiran helped tutor McKenna in different subjects. McKenna had dyslexia and often needed to focus more on her work. She researched ways to help McKenna with that and they put the best exercises to practice together. McKenna never got less than a B on any paper, test or quiz after they began studying together, helping her achieve her dream of the Police Academy, which she started next month.

Eventually, she had asked Tommy and Oliver if she could invite her friend to Sunday night Movie night. They were curious about McKenna. Although they were in the same grade, the boys had different classes from her and McKenna. McKenna had sat with them for lunch a few times, but not enough to really get to know her. They'd said yes and had watched The Godfather, to see how she handled a classic film. When she had not only not been grossed out by the horse's head – unfortunately she herself had, Keiran remembered – but had approved of the reasoning behind it, they'd accepted McKenna as one of their own.

Keiran looked at the clock and saw that it was almost 6:50. Tommy would be here any second. She went to Oliver's bathroom and got out the aspirin and took it and placed it with the water, soda and cookies on the coffee table in front of his couch. She turned to pick a movie and smiled. He would hate that, she thought, as her hand reached for the blu ray case.

She opened the case and put the disc in the player. She changed the input on the television and grabbed the blu ray player remote as she settled herself on the couch. She figured he still wasn't speaking to her, so she'd just watch the movie until he fell asleep. That would happen in a couple of hours, so she'd only have to maintain her calm until then. She hit the play button on the remote. Oliver Queen, you big baby, she thought.

Oliver stalked up the back stairs of his home, shame mixing with the anger that had been rolling through him since his lunch with Laurel that afternoon. She'd found out that he'd cheated on her, again. She'd had enough. She'd thought they had decided to take the next step and get an apartment together and instead he'd gone and done this. He hadn't made it any better when he'd said that she had been the one to decide they were getting an apartment together, not them. He hadn't been sure yet. She'd stood up and thrown her drink in his face and then stalked out of the restaurant. He'd surprised himself because he hadn't run after her. He'd stood up, left money on the table to cover the bill, cleaned himself up in the men's room and caught a cab to Tommy's apartment. Where he'd spent the next three hours drinking himself into a right simmer.

When Tommy had said he needed to meet his father at 7:30 for dinner, Oliver had told him to just drop him off at the bar down the street. Then he and Tommy could hit the clubs after his dinner. Tommy had decided then that it was probably best if Oliver wasn't left alone. He'd ushered Oliver to his car and called Keiran, rat best friend that he was.

He was just surprised that she had agreed.

He knew how he had been treating her all week. She'd already come by and told him to grow up and stop being such a jerk or he'd regret not spending time with her when she left. Friends should be better to each other than this she'd told him.

He knew she was right. It just hurt less to think about her leaving when he wasn't around her. And if he wasn't around her, it wouldn't hurt when she left because he had already been practicing being without her. Because she was leaving him. She was leaving him because she was bright, smart, funny, kind, good and beautiful. She was leaving because she'd set a goal for herself and had accomplished it.

She was leaving because he was a coward. She was leaving because he had given her no reason to consider staying.

He'd known Laurel was going to break up with him soon, just why today? Why had Laurel finally felt the need to break up with him today? Why couldn't she have waited until he was back from his trip to China with his dad? That way Keiran would already have been gone and he would have been able to adjust to being alone on his own terms.

He opened the door to his room and heard Peter Falk start telling the tale of Princess Buttercup to a young Fred Savage. He groaned inwardly. He should've known she'd already be here. He looked over and saw her sunk into his couch, her knees up and her bare feet resting on the coffee table. She's also come prepared with diet Dr. Pepper, water, aspirin, and if his nose is correct, her homemade chocolate chip cookies. For a moment his anger abates and he sighs. He doesn't deserve her he starts to think, and then remembers she is leaving HIM. He stalks into the room, closing the door with more force than necessary and throwing his keys into a bowl on his dresser.

She doesn't say anything, doesn't even look at him. She just watches her movie, ignoring his childish antics. This frustrates him even more. He stalks over to his dresser. He realizes his iPod is playing. He punches the off button so that the only sound in the room is the movie playing and his angry breathing.

She still doesn't say anything, just turns and throws a bottle of water to him. He catches it quickly and the bottle of aspirin that comes after it. He doesn't thank her, but he does open the aspirin bottle, shaking a few loose and downing them with the water. He sits on his bed, finishing the bottle and watching the movie over the top of her head.

'I thought you were supposed to babysit me,' he taunts her.

She doesn't turn to look at him, but says 'Well, I'm sitting here listening to you stalk around your room acting like your three, so babysitting seems an appropriate term.'

'Well, I'm fine. You don't need to stay. I can take care of myself.' He wishes he could stop the anger in his voice, yet something keeps egging him on.

She finally turns and looks at him. 'Ollie, you sound like an idiot. Just stop. I'm here because Tommy asked me to come, not because I think you want me here.' He sees in her eyes, the hurt his distance has caused her, for the first time. It breaks him and his anger boils over. He can't help it and he lashes out at her.

'Go. Just go. You're right, I don't want you here.' He says, his voice cold. Yes, he was an idiot.

'Jesus, Ollie, I already told you I'm staying, so just sit down and watch the movie, ok?' She turns back to the screen.

His head is screaming for him to get away from her, he knows how he is behaving. He can't seem to control himself. He can smell the scent of her body lotion – lavender and chamomile – blending with the aroma of the cookies she brought him. It is tantalizing him today, more than normal, leading his thoughts down paths with her in his mind that started the moment her skirts got shorter in high school. It clutches at him that he won't have her here anymore, whenever he wants her to be, because she always has been, whenever he needed her.

He needs to get away from her, from her smell, from her pained and beautiful eyes, from her dainty fingers and toes – nails painted light blue. They're the exact same shade as they were last Halloween when she wore the Dazzler costumer. The zipper on the white, skin-tight bodysuit had gone down to the belt at her waist, he remembered. His mouth starts to go dry, just like it did that night. Jesus, he really needs to get oxygen to his brain, needs to be away from her. He starts to head towards the door.

Quick as a flash she's up and standing in front of the door. 'Ollie, where are you going?'

'I'm going to join my parents for dinner. I don't want to be here right now,' he growls at her.

'You're not leaving, Ollie. Not while you're upset. Just relax with me for a little while, please? I'll make you dinner after we've sat for a bit. We can go down to the kitchen together later, ok?' she asks him politely, but her tone is clear that he won't be leaving the room. And he knows that she can stop him.

McKenna and Keiran had started watching that spy show Alias when they were in high school. They had both thought Sydney Bristow was the coolest thing on TV because she was smart, confident and she kicked ass to take down the bad guy every time. He and Tommy hadn't minded watching the show because they thought Sydney Bristow was hot. The two girls had both decided to take martial arts classes so that they could be as badass as she was.

He laughs looking down at the 5'4" blonde standing in front of him, her hair in messy curls atop her head. His gaze travels lower and he sees she's wearing a small light pink tank. Her bra is a darker color, he can tell because of its dark outline under the lighter shirt. She has on black yoga shorts that give him full view of her shapely legs. She's become similar in shape to her high school hero, agent Sydney Bristow, he notices as his gaze travels all the way back up her body to her face. She doesn't acknowledge the gaze that just travelled up and down her body. She just waits, looking up at him. He wants to walk out the door, but knows that really isn't an option.

'Fine,' he says tersely and turns and walks to the couch, slamming himself down and folding his arms.

She waits a few moments, then steps around him and resumes her position on the couch. She offers him the other soda. He takes it, not snapping at her this time, and says, 'Thanks.'

'You're welcome,' she says, and she smiles at him, 'Now shut up and watch the movie. It's getting to the good part.'

When Oliver awoke it was almost 11. He wasn't sure when he'd fallen asleep, but he didn't remember seeing the end of the movie. He tried to move and then realized there was a warm pressure on his shoulder. He opened his eyes to see Keiran sleeping on his shoulder, her full lips slightly parted as she breathes in and out, her whole face peaceful.

He realized he needed to use the bathroom. All his alcohol intake from during the day was pounding for release. He slowly, gently moved out from under her, settling her to lie on the couch while he went to use his bathroom.

After he'd finished and washed and dried his hands, Oliver walked over to the coffee table to pick up the blu ray remote and turn the movie player off. Then he turned to look down at Keiran. He wasn't sure if he should wake her or let her sleep on the couch. He really didn't want to wake her, but was about to do just that, when her eyes flew open and she sat up.

'Did the movie finish?' she asked. He nodded.

'Ok, well,' she hesitated and shook her head, looking up at him, smiling tentatively 'you seem better. I'm going to wash up and then I'll head home.' she said. She stood from the couch and walked over to the bathroom, shutting the door behind her. Oliver began to undress and changed himself into a pair of flannel pants to sleep in. He was just tying them closed, when she came out of the bathroom. She looked directly at him, staring at his bare chest. Then her light eyes rose to his and he saw her start to blush before her she turned her gaze away from him.

'Sorry I fell asleep Ollie.' She grabbed her bottle of soda and drank the end of it, throwing the bottle into the recycling bin. She picked up the cookie container and turned to him. 'Ok, so, I'll see you tomorrow at your parent's Labor Day party. Sweet dreams, Ollie.' She stepped up on her tiptoes and kissed his cheek.

As she turns to leave, Tommy's voice echoes through his mind..._Stop being such a jackass and tell her how you feel_…he puts his hand on her arm.

He takes a deep breath. 'Will you stay here tonight? Please…I know I've been…shitty to you. But, you leave in a few days. I know you aren't leaving forever. I… I'd just like to not have any regrets before you leave.'

She turns back to him, a questioning look on her face. 'Ollie, what could you possibly…?'

He takes her face in his hands and kisses her. Her lips are soft and full and moves with his in a way that makes his brain go foggy. He can taste the faint tarty sweetness of cherry soda as her lips part and he moved his tongue gently with hers. He pulls back from her, looking into her eyes.

'Regrets like that…' he said, answering the question she wasn't able to finish.

She looks up at him, her eyes sparkling like warm jewels. A smile starts to play at her lips and she reaches out her hand to his bare chest. When she touched him, he had to suck in air, her fingers leaving a trail of warm fire on his skin. She ran her fingers up to his shoulders and then down to his navel. He stood still, lost in her eyes as they danced with mischief.

'Regrets like that, hmmm…I didn't know you had thoughts about me that could result in regrets…I wish I had though. It would have saved us a lot of wasted time.' She laughed, and the same warmth that always spread through his chest at the sound of her laughter returned to him.

He crushes her to him, walking her backward until her back is against the door to his room. His mouth ravages hers and her hands explore every inch of his exposed skin. His hands skim the warm skin just under her t-shirt and he lifts her so that her legs encircle his waist and her hands go around his neck. His hands slide along her legs, starting at her ankles and move slowly upward to softer, silkier skin.

She pulls her head away from him, breaking the moment. He holds her tightly, his chest pressed against her, his gaze searching her face, finding her eyes. He was surrounded by the smell of her skin, intoxicated by it. He felt like he never wanted to stop touching her, kissing her, tasting her.

'What is it?' he asked her.

'Ollie, I don't think…think this is a good idea.' She said, slowly and quietly, staring directly into his eyes, her hands and legs still clasped around him.

He stiffened. 'What? Me, you don't think I'm a good idea?' he asked her, his breath ragged from the painful cold that had just filled his chest.

'No,' she kissed him gently and giggled, defrosting the ball of ice that had so quickly gone around his heart at her words. 'I think you and I are a GREAT idea. FANTASTIC! I've had thoughts and fantasies about you since I was 14!' she smiled at him widely and wiggled her eyebrows up and down.

'14? Really, fantasies…' then he looked at her, and said, a little ashamed to admit he was curious, but asking anyway, '…like sexual fantasies? About me? At 14?' he said in mock shock and surprise.

She laughed again, but smiled at him widely. 'Wouldn't you like to know?' she said innocently, batting her eyes at him. He couldn't help himself. He grinned and pushed himself closer to her, kissing her again.

'Whoa…oh my god, you keep doing that and I will lose all my resolve' she said, between kisses.

'Well, if you're going to give me a challenge…'he said, and began tracing kisses along the pulse line of her throat. Her hand tightened in his hair for a moment and he heard her sigh.

'Oliver, we can't. Our first time, it can't be tonight.' he stopped.

He hadn't thought about how far this evening could go, but she had. The fact that she had thought about it and where it could go thrilled him. He also understood what she was saying. He realized that they both needed to take a step back to assess the risk factor involved in the potential change in their relationship. And that maybe they should talk about it first, before they both decided to take the next step, something he had reminded Laurel about today. He needed to take his own advice.

He looked at her. 'You're absolutely right,' he said and he was rewarded with her amazing smile. 'We should take things slow, even though you are leaving at the end of the week.' He leaned his forehead against hers. He sighed and closed his eyes. 'We can figure it out.'

He felt her hand on his cheek and felt her soft lips against his again. 'Ollie, when you get back, I know I'll be gone. But, well, my new apartment has lots of room. And, it'll take time for me to make new friends. Maybe…since you aren't in school', she hesitated, 'maybe…you could…'

He opened his eyes and looked at her. She was looking up at him and biting on her lower lip, but when he looked at her, she continued. 'I'm not trying to rush anything. I don't want to pressure you at all. I know we have a lot to talk about but, maybe…youcouldcomestaywithmeforawhile?'

He pulled back and looked at her. She didn't usually babble. She sounded just like she had the day she'd asked him and Tommy to watch the movie with her. Hopeful, a little scared, not wanting to betray how much she wanted what she was asking for.

'Keiran…Hoggle…look at me,' he said, unable to keep the smile from his mouth. But, when she looked up at him and he saw how truly nervous she was asking the question, he moved his hand to cup the side of her face. 'When I get back, I would love that,' he said. She leaned her face into his hand and closed her eyes, relaxing. While her eyes were closed, he leaned in and kissed her soft lips again, slowly, then moved away, trailing along her jaw line with his lips. She moaned, but didn't make any attempt to stop him.

He could feel the heat deepening between them in the places where their bodies seemed to fit like two pieces of a puzzle, perfect and natural. He also felt a sensation of heat from where her necklace usually fell. He looked down at it and saw that it appeared to be glowing between them. He started to ask her about it, but she started moving her hands across his skin again and he needed to stop that sensation or he was afraid that neither of them would have any resolve to stop. He sighed and slowly lowered her to the floor. 'Would you like me to walk you home?' he asked.

She smiled at him again and bit her lip before saying, 'Is the offer to stay over still open? Even if we are going to…wait, we could still spend the night together?' and she looked up at him. He grinned.

'As you wish.' He says, referencing their earlier film viewing.

'I'll need to borrow a t-shirt…' she said, smiling at him using one of her favorite film quotes.

He found a faded Starling University t-shirt that had shrunk in the wash for her and then turned his back for her to change, not wanting her to be away from him. When she told him that he could turn around, he couldn't help but notice that the shirt was still big for her. It hung to mid-thigh and the sleeves went to just below the tips of her fingers. She looked incredibly sexy as he imagined what she had on underneath his shirt. He blew out a breath, slow, he reminded himself.

Before she could stop him, he swept her up in his arms and carried her to the bed, where he lay her down. As she got herself settled under the covers, he moved over to his dresser and turned off the light, turning on his iPod. Then he returned to the bed, got under the covers and pulled her close to him, her back up against his chest. She was completely surrounded by his body and she felt perfect snuggled against him. He breathed in her scent…lavender and chamomile…starting to relax and feeling…happy. He couldn't remember the last time he had felt like this he thought as he drifted off to sleep.

Keiran watched as Oliver drifted with the lifeless body of his father in the tiny raft. She blinked and watched as Oliver was dragged under water, screaming a name she couldn't make out. She tried to reach him, but blinked again and saw him with an arrow sticking out of him, covered in blood. She screamed, and the scene changed again. Over and over. Blink. Oliver running in fear. Blink. Oliver in a cage. Blink. Oliver falling over a cliff into a pool of water. Blink.

Keiran moaned in her sleep, but didn't wake up. Strong arms surrounded her and she turned her body towards them, feeling warmth enveloping her, chasing the nightmare away. Not remembering it when she woke the next day in Oliver's arms.


	3. Chapter 3 - TOMORROW

Chapter 3 - TOMORROW

February 2008

Bruce Wayne stared at the petite blonde with the pale violet eyes sitting across from him, registering the glowing, dark purple, Amethyst around her neck surrounded by bright pink stones. He wondered when the hell his life had become a fairy tale, a magical fairy tale, no less. He blamed Zatanna Zatarra. Six months ago, he'd laughed in her face when she'd told him the supposed 'prophecy.' Right now, he'd take bets she was taking her turn laughing her head off at him. He could almost hear her saying 'Don't say I didn't warn you.'

He sat across from Zatanna in his study, staring at her incredulously. Then he started to laugh.

'I knew you wouldn't believe me,' she said, folding her arms across her chest. 'I know you don't believe in magic, but it's real and it's about to arrive in Gotham City.'

'Zatanna, I haven't seen you in years. Now, you literally pop into my home, and you want me to believe in a prophecy about a magical stone imbued with the powers of the Greek Goddess Aphrodite!' he paused. 'AND, that I play a significant role in it?'

'Bruce, it's real. I know the timing is inconvenient as you've just begun your own…'she began.

He gave her a cold look and she stopped speaking. He knew she'd probably figured out his nighttime activities, but it didn't make him comfortable that she knew. He didn't trust magic and even though she'd saved his life once, he didn't completely trust her either.

'This is going to happen. The signs indicate that the prophecy has already begun, her heart has been given. You will be needed sooner than you know.' She finished. She held his look, not backing away from his anger or his distrust. She was serious. That and that alone made him relent.

'Fine,' he said his voice hard. 'Tell me again.'

She pulled the scroll out again. 'It is said that the Gods and Goddesses of Ancient Greece created stones and imbued them with their powers to bestow their gifts, temporarily, to their favorite mortals, their most devout followers. These God Stones, would allow mortals to use the power of the associated God or Goddess, most often in some way to defend the particular stone's God or Goddess, their favorite temple or city. Demigods, the half-god half-mortal children normally called to defend the Gods weren't always available, so these mortals could help in times of crisis. Often times, even though devout, the mortals weren't strong enough to host the powers of the God or Goddess and would literally burn up if they didn't return the power quickly enough.' She looked at him to make sure he was paying attention, before continuing on.

'However, there were some mortal bloodlines that were naturally able to harness and control the powers of the God or Goddess if they were bestowed upon them. These mortals were able to control the stone's powers in such ways, as if they were mortal versions of the God or Goddess themselves. They had complete command over the stone and wouldn't burn out, allowing them to continue to use the stone, as long as their faith in the God or Goddesses' powers remained.' She looked down at the paper in front of her, a copy of the prophecy she'd found, and read it aloud to him for the second time this evening.

_The last in a line to reach twenty-one_

_Will give her heart to a powerful son._

_The Goddess of Love is set free_

_As the heart that was given is lost at sea._

_Guided by a darkest Knight,_

_In the ways of magic and light,_

_A protector's promise ignites a spark_

_Hearts joined by love, saved from the dark._

_Two warrior's paths to be revealed_

_To their lives her fate is sealed._

_Love's sacrifice to be unmade_

_As whispered words of love are said._

She handed the paper to him, which in addition to the prophecy, included a hand-drawn image of an example of a God Stone. It was a larger, round stone surrounded by small ones. 'If it truly is the God Stone of Aphrodite, the stone will be an Amethyst. The strength of her magic will be indicated by the color of the Amethyst and the surrounding stones. When the Amethyst fills to a deep color and the jewels on the outside color to pink, she has bonded with the Goddess and will need to learn her powers.'

'And I'm supposed to train her?' he asked. 'I don't even believe in magic. Why would you think of me?'

'…_Guided by a darkest Knight_…you don't see your role?' Zatanna sighed, 'She needs to learn defense and protection as well as how to control her emotions and, therefore, her powers. A God Stone, once awakened, will attract those seeking power. It could even call to other God Stones, awaken them.' She looked at him, 'I know no one in this world more suited than you to train her in the ways of control and strength. The magic will train her, but she'll need protection, guidance, discipline. She'll need you for that.' She finished.

'Say I believe you. How will I even be able to find her? Do you know how many 21 year-old women there are in this city?' he asked her, feeling the smirk on his face.

'She'll seek you out, of course.' She turned and started walking away from him, towards the terrace, then turned and faced him again. 'She'll need your help with something, most likely to do with someone she loves. When she comes to you, send word to me, and I'll come to see her. She will need someone to discuss Magic with, even though you're to be her guide. I'll offer what I can to her, even though our Magics will be very different…She's supposed to be a source of great good Bruce, from what all the signs indicate. The power of love fighting to bring light into this world, at a time when it feels we could use it most.' She sighed, 'Please keep an open mind.'

Then she said '_emoh_' and he knew she had activated her spell as she disappeared to wherever was her home now.

Keiran stared at the intense green eyes of the man across from her as they travelled down to the necklace nestled near her heart and those eyes went wide. Bruce Wayne rubbed his face with his hand and seemed to laugh and sigh at the same time before he focused on her again. She felt like she wanted to grab the collar of her shirt and pull it closer to her neck, but she'd come here to ask for help and that might seem rude after the…glance…he'd just given her.

'Thank you for seeing me Mr. Wayne,' she started. 'I realize that this was an unusual request. I appreciate you taking the time.' She was doing everything she could to stay in control. She needed him to help her. She also knew the information she was about to give him would not make this a friendly meeting.

'Alfred said that it was a matter of life or death…I believe. I found myself… intrigued' he said lowly. The look he gave her was dark, like she had already angered him. She kept her confidence though and plowed on.

'Yes, I did say that, and I believe it is,' she said. 'I need your help in finding my friend and I think…no, I know you're the only one that can help me.'

He remained quiet, leaning back and continuing to stare at her. His eyes flickered down to her breast again, seeming to focus on her necklace, and then back up to her eyes. She blushed harder. She took out her file and started spreading it out on the table in front of her.

'His ship was lost at sea almost 6 months ago in a severe storm,' she said quickly,' and I suppose it makes perfect sense that weather like that could down something like this,' she pointed to this schematics of the Queen's Gambit, 'but I don't think the weather did it. No wreckage has been found, nothing.'

He still said nothing, but she'd seen his eyes widen a little at the recognition the ship's name on the schematic's plans. His eyes held a gleam of curiosity now, so she rushed ahead. The hard part was coming up.

'I don't know enough about yachts, or even where to start looking. When I interned with Mr. Fox in Applied Sciences last spring, I didn't know a lot about the materials, so he would provide me with the parameters for research. That way I could learn more and then I would be able to continue to expand searches myself. Right now though, I don't have that kind of time. With your help, I think we might be able to save the survivor of this disaster.' She finished.

His eyes returned to hers, filled with suspicion, a frown on his face. 'I'm sorry Miss Flannery, but I don't see how I can help. If you're hoping to fund a search and rescue, Lucius would have been happy…'

She cut him off and said in a rush, 'Mr. Wayne, I'm not just asking for your help, I'm asking for Batman's help.'

He smiled, almost pityingly at her, but his eyes turned hard as he continued to look at her. 'Then it seems a strange request to make of me if you need the assistance of Batman,' he said to her coldly.

'Mr. Wayne, you and Batman are one and the same, I know it. Just as much as I know that there is at least one survivor from this sinking boat,' she said.

He moved so quickly, she didn't realize that she was standing until she felt the hard wall of his study at her back. The cold, dark eyes staring into hers worked to intimidate her, but she didn't show him fear. She couldn't. He was her last chance.

She'd been having nightmares since the Queen's Gambit had sunk, seeing Oliver in various scenarios, all horrible. Oliver in a lifeboat dehydrating in the hot sun, Oliver watching his father shoot himself, Oliver being shot with an arrow, Oliver being beaten, Oliver falling, Oliver fighting.

Night after night, over and over, she had the dreams. She woke up every night after seeing the awful visions, crying, her heart breaking anew. She'd stay up for the rest of the night, not wanting to go back to sleep and see him hurting. Not wanting to wake up crying again. She was exhausted. She needed to get out of this cycle.

When Tommy and McKenna had spent Thanksgiving with her, it had been hard to keep the dreams and the tears away from them. They'd commented on how tired she looked, so she'd purchased better makeup and made a great show of relaxing and enjoying the long weekend while they were there. They'd seemed more confident in her their last night together, which was for the best. McKenna needed to worry about the Police Academy and Tommy was having a hard enough time still dealing with his best friend's disappearance. As much as she loved them for it, they didn't need to worry about her.

That last night with them was also the night that she'd found out Bruce Wayne was Batman. The three of them had gone out drinking, not a normal activity for her, and they'd gotten lost on the way back to her apartment, which is not in the nicest neighborhood. They'd crossed paths with a couple of gang members who'd decided they'd wanted their money and jewelry. She, Tommy and McKenna had been about to give over their things when Batman had swooped down and disarmed the two men.

She'd seen his dark blue aura, as dark as midnight, only allowing the smallest figment of light from the world around him to penetrate to the man inside the aura. She'd recognized it instantly because of its distinctiveness. It was hard to miss at the Board Meetings where Bruce Wayne pretended to either sleep or ogle the legs of the secretaries and assistants in the room, including hers on more than one occasion. She never let it bother her after that because she now realized that was his mask.

She'd kept his secret since then and the seed of an idea was planted that night. She'd started to think that her dreams might be an indication that somehow Oliver might be alive. Since she only had images though, no sound and no sign of where he might be, she had no idea where to start looking for him, or even how. Maybe Bruce Wayne, the Batman, would be able to help her...

As Batman, he was able to take on multiple opponents as one man. He found information about criminals and righted wrongs. He helped people. He might help her figure out where to start looking. She knew it was as slim chance, she had no proof Oliver was actually alive, just her dreams.

But the smallest hope that he might be able to help her stayed with her. So, she'd waited, unsure of whether or not she would ever be able to ask the Batman for his help without a way to prove anything to him.

Two days ago, she'd received a call from an unknown number on her cell phone. She'd answered it only to have the scene in her apartment change to a grey room with large windows that seemed to a radio or control tower. Oliver stood in front of her, a clunky looking phone to his ear, his own hand covering his mouth. He was dressed all in black and he was filthy, his hair matted, the smell of burning metal and wood and blood emanated around him.

'Hello? Hello…Oliver?' she said.

Then a man, dressed all in grey, came running up behind Oliver, took the phone from him and slammed it down. She was back in her apartment holding her cell phone to her ear, the call ended.

It was the final sign for her. It didn't matter how much she had been hurt by Oliver Queen. He was still her childhood friend. A part of her would always love him for that. If there was any way she could save him and help his family, help Tommy, she had to try.

She stared defiantly at the hard eyes targeting hers. 'You trying to scare or intimidate me won't change the fact that you and Batman are one and the same person. I won't tell your secret. I've known since last Thanksgiving when you saved me and my friends.' She tried to ignore the pain building in her back as he kept her pinned to the wall. 'Whether you help me or not, I still won't tell anyone who you are.'

His grip on her softened, just a little, his cold eyes bearing down on hers. Then he unexpectedly let her go and turned away from her.

Tears started to form in her eyes as she tried to keep her voice even 'Please, Mr. Wayne, I'm asking…'

'I heard your request. You want my help to save Oliver Queen, whom the whole world believes is dead, but whom you believe is still alive.' He laughed at her cruelly, still not facing her, 'Your childhood friend, whom you are wholeheartedly in love with. Don't deny it, it's written all over your face. And he hurt you too, I can see it in your eyes, yet you still want to save him. Why? So he can reject you again?' his cold voice asked her as he turned back to face her.

She strode over to him and slapped him hard, harder than she had intended she realized as a red mark started to appear on his face almost immediately. She felt an angry energy spreading throughout her body. How dare he mock her? She was asking for his help, she didn't need to be made to feel pain she was already trying to forget.

She paid for her impulsive action as he pushed her back against the wall, harder this time, her breath knocked out of her. 'How do you know?' he growled at her, his voice not that of Bruce Wayne anymore.

'Wha…' she started to ask him, but he shook her, pushing her harder into the wall.

'How do you know who I am?' he repeated.

'I see auras…I can see a person's true energy. They're unique, like fingerprints. Colors can be similar, but the way they move, their clarity, that's always different. Yours were the same, Bruce Wayne and Batman, midnight blue, not playful, almost rigid, letting in very little light,' she said quickly. She looked at him and realized his face was being lit from below, bathed in a pinkish light. They both looked down. Her Amethyst was glowing.

'Does that happen often?' he asked, his tone less threatening, still cautious.

'Only with one other person…'she said to him softly.

He looked into her eyes and she saw the hostility leave. She tried one final time.

'Mr. Wayne, right before my 8th birthday, my father died. I'd been sickly as a child and he gave me this necklace. He told me to keep it close.' She felt his grip loosening again and continued, 'The moment he died in a car crash, I was at a yoga class waiting for my mother to pick me up. Suddenly, I was at the crash site and saw my father, surrounded in a light blue aura, telling me he loved me and that I should believe in magic. Then, I was back in my yoga studio and my mother was picking me up. A few hours later, Gotham police came to tell my mother that my father was dead. Something I knew hours before. Shortly after that, I started to see auras all the time.'

She realized that he was no longer pushing her up against the wall, but just holding her there as she continued to talk. 'Since the Queen's Gambit went down, I've had nightmares of Oliver Queen being beaten, tortured, fighting, shot with an arrow, running for his life…over and over again, night after night, this happens. Two days ago, I had a vision, just like the one of my father's death, while I was receiving a call on my cell phone from an unknown number. When I answered the call, I went to another place and Oliver was standing right there in front of me on the other end of the line. I couldn't hear him, but I could smell fire and smoke and blood. He was filthy, but he was alive.'

She met his eyes again and put every ounce of her heart into her voice, 'I don't know why I can see these things. I just know that I can and that I need to do something about this. I can't continue like this Mr. Wayne, I can't sleep, I can't eat…'she paused, taking in a shaky breath. 'Yes, you….are right, I…did love him and he broke my heart, and long before any of that, he was one of my best friends. No matter what has happened between us, if he's alive and I can save him, I will. Now, will you help me?'

'How old are you Miss Flannery?' He asked her, which caught her by surprise. She hesitated, 'I don't see what that has to do with…'

'Humor me,' he said.

'Twenty-one,' she told him, 'Why?

He didn't respond. He let her go completely and turned, walking away from her again. As he stood by the window a long silence went on between them.

Finally, she said, 'Mr. Wayne?'

'Go home, Miss Flannery. Come back at this time tomorrow. I'll give you my answer then.'

Hope fluttered in her heart. 'Thank you,' she said, and turned to head home, praying that the next 24 hours wouldn't be as excruciatingly long as she felt they were going to be.

Bruce Wayne walked out to the large veranda his penthouse had. He rubbed his face. That slap had hurt. He'd wanted to test her, to see if she had any idea about the glowing jewel at her neck, what her visions meant, if she really was acting out of love. She'd definitely given something back to him and he'd felt a little power behind it, a heat.

Fuck you, Zatanna, he thought.

The wind cleared his head. He heard Alfred's footsteps come up behind him.

'I assume you heard the whole thing,' he said to his butler, 'Your thoughts, Alfred?' he inquired.

'What a sad and lonely girl. She has no idea what she is, and she's come to ask for your help, an act of love…'Alfred began. The man knew about the prophecy. He didn't hide much from his loyal companion.

'Alfred…'he sighed and turned to the man,

His butler smiled at him, a little too knowingly he felt, 'I think that poor girl is in so much pain, more than she even realizes and she just came to you and requested the help of Batman. Batman has pledged himself to help citizens, though most don't know where to go to ask for his help. Additionally, a friend of yours recently brought to your attention' he chuckled, 'a magical prophecy that involves you, the power of love and a woman. And, that a woman matching the description of that prophecy, almost to the exact detail, just left your apartment after doing exactly as it was predicted she would by the same friend.'

'You're not helping Alfred,' he said a little annoyed with the older man.

Alfred continued, but his tone became more serious. 'Sir, someone has asked for your help, help that you are uniquely suited to provide. This person has also admitted to keeping your secret for quite some time, and to prove how she knew your secret, she revealed not one, but two secrets of her own. If I were to guess, I would believe that she's never told anyone of her ability to see peoples…auras, did she say? Nor do I believe that anyone else in her life, outside of the boy in question, has any inkling of the additional relationship she shared with Oliver Queen.' Alfred paused, 'Can you imagine how much courage it must have taken for her to come here to ask for your help and be forced to share that information with someone for the first time in her life?' Alfred chuckled suddenly, 'Plus, she's not afraid of you. I heard that slap all the way in the kitchen, not that you didn't deserve it after what you said, Master Bruce.'

'I know Alfred, I was testing her.' He replied.

He had to agree with Alfred, though there was no need to tell him that. Keiran Flannery had revealed that she knew his secret and when pressed had trusted him enough with hers. Dammit, she'd shown no fear of him and had bravely given of herself in the pursuit of trying to save someone else. She'd had no way of knowing how he'd react with any of that information. He could feel Alfred's smile growing larger before he looked at him.

'She knows my secret, and I'm supposed to train her. She's now a liability. I'll need to be able to protect my identity and her because of what she knows. How do I do that, Alfred?' he asked.

'I've been feeling like my management of your…uh…social activities, both during the day and the evenings are growing a little difficult. Maybe we could hire a personal assistant to help with 'managing' you…someone who already works at Wayne Enterprises…' Alfred said. 'Lucius may have an idea or two. You should call him.'

Bruce smiled. He wondered how long Alfred had waited to call Lucius after Keiran Flannery had left his apartment.

Keiran couldn't sleep. It wasn't her fear of the dreams of Oliver that kept her up. She was restless. Energy was coursing through her. She felt wired, like she'd been mainlining caffeine. Her necklace glowed steadily and the energy seemed to pulse from there. It had been doing that since she'd slapped Bruce Wayne. She hadn't meant to do that…he'd just made her so angry, putting her down because she'd taken a chance on loving someone. She felt the energy pulse through her again.

It wouldn't let her sleep. She tried reading, went through a series of yoga routines, took a long shower, tried some late night television, but nothing worked. She couldn't stay still. She turned the lights out, deciding to try to sleep again, and pressed play on her iPod dock.

…_How can I stand here with you, And not be moved by you?..._

The melody played and the tears come anew. Some nights, you just couldn't escape your heartache, she thought, as the memory of the night before she left for Gotham rushed back to her…

…_How can I stand here with you, And not be moved by you?..._

'I love this song' she sighed, leaning her head against his shoulder.

'I know you do, you used to sing it all the time…'he whispered to her, holding her in his arms, as they danced slowly.

'I thought you hated dancing, Oliver Queen,' she said as she looked up at him, her arms going around his neck.

'For you, I'll make an exception,' he said and he leaned down to kiss her. She melted, like she did every time he kissed her.

They'd spent the last three nights together, sleeping in each other's arms after spending hours up talking and kissing. She'd sneak up to his room after everyone was asleep for the night, then sneak out again before her mother came in to start breakfast. They hadn't talked about it, but they hadn't said anything to their family or friends about what was going on between them. It wasn't time for that yet.

Tonight, his parents and his sister were down at the dock, staying on the Queen's Gambit. Thea loved the boat, as did Moira, so Robert had brought them down there for a couple of days before he and Oliver left for Beijing. She and Oliver had the mansion to themselves, their last night together. They were dancing in his family room.

His kiss intensified, deepening as he pulled her closer to him. She didn't want this to end. At the same time, she couldn't wait for him to be with her in Gotham. Every time she thought of him going to China, she got the chills. She wished he wasn't going. Her thoughts disappeared as his hands roamed over her back, the warmth of his skin felt clearly through the thin fabric of her sun dress.

She could feel the heat rising between them. For the past three nights, it felt like the more they were together, the deeper the heat between them became. Tonight, she felt like she never wanted to stop touching him.

Her hands moved from around his neck to the bottom of his t-shirt, slipping them under the material and touching the bare skin beneath. She heard his quick intake of breath and brought her hands upwards, separating from his lips just long enough to bring his shirt over his head and for it to hit the floor. He pulled her to him again, his lips searing to hers, his hands fisting in her hair. Her hands skimmed the skin right above the waist of his jeans.

'Jesus…' he whispered to her lips, pulling away from her, making her hunger for his contact again. He put his forehead on hers. 'Why does everything feel so…different with you?' he asked her.

She didn't say anything. She couldn't answer that question for him. She knew the reason why it felt so different for her. He needed to answer that question for himself.

…_Cause You're all I want, You're all I need, You're everything, everything…_

She could show him how she felt though, she thought.

She took his hand and led him upstairs to his room. She sat him down on his bed and stood in front of him and slowly slid the straps of her sundress off her shoulders, until the dress loosened and fell to the floor. She stood in front of him and watched him looking at her.

His eyes were dark and intense. He reached out his hand to her stomach, placing his hand flat against it. She heard her own quick breath as the heat from his palm flooded her body. He stood, his hand moving slowly from her stomach, straight up, until it covered her heart, where her necklace lay. He slowly took his finger and traced an outline around it and then continued to trail his fingers just above the lace trim on her bra.

She felt like she was on fire. She looked in his eyes again and saw his desire for her, but saw something else as well. Something he couldn't say yet, but that she knew he felt.

He sat back down on the bed, grabbing her quickly so that she straddled his lap, her arms around his neck, his eyes looking up into hers. He pushed her hair out of her face, tucking it behind her ear.

'You are…the most beautiful woman I've ever seen,' he said, awe and sincerity in his voice.

A fire burst inside her, any fear or hesitation was gone. She reached for him, finding his mouth, a hunger inside of her needing to be filled by him, only him.

She felt his arms go around her, holding her close to him again. She could feel how much he wanted her in every spot their bodies connected, the heat an intense pulse between them, driving her delightfully insane.

His hands slowly traveled up her arm, skimming the bared flesh of her torso, returning to her face, holding her head steady, his eyes focused completely on hers, 'Keiran…I've never wanted someone this much in my life…you don't even have to touch me and…this intense desire just builds inside me,' he paused,' but I don't want you to regret…not waiting.' The last part was almost a growl.

She didn't think it was possible to love someone more than she already loved him. She was practically naked, offering herself to him, and he still wanted her to be sure. Something inside her burst again and she reached for him. 'No regrets,' she whispered, using his own words to answer him. She kissed him, then pushed him down to the bed and loved him with all her heart could give.

Later, she'd lain in the bed and sighed as he curled up behind her, tracing kisses along her shoulder and neck. She quickly heard his breath become even and knew he had fallen asleep. She turned, so that her head was in the crook of his neck, it was her second favorite place in the world, her first being the spooning position she'd just left. She loved the feel of his arms around her.

She lay there, listening to him breath, wondering if everyone felt this way when it came to love. She hoped so. She traced her fingertip around the area where his heart was, saw his face smile in his sleep at her touch, his arm tightening a little more around her.

'I love you Oliver Queen,' she said, quietly, her eyelids starting to droop.

The next thing she knew, her phone was ringing. It was Tommy telling her he'd be there in 45 minutes to pick her up to take her to the airport. Oliver had called him to tell him he wouldn't be able to make it like they had planned. Something had come up with Thea, he'd said.

She'd told him she'd be ready, and then hung up. She was naked and alone in Oliver's bed. There was no note on the bedside tables or bedroom dresser. There were no missed calls or texts on her phone. She found one of Oliver's t-shirts and took a quick walk through the mansion. No one was around, not even the staff, as the Queens were at the marina. She was completely alone.

She went back to his room and into his bathroom to take a shower. She looked in the mirror and almost gasped. The amethyst at her throat had turned a dark purple, the small stones around it a bright pink and she herself was surrounded in a bright pink light. Her aura, she was seeing her own aura. She'd never seen it before, only the auras of other people. She started to cry, but pulled herself together. She needed to be ready for Tommy. Where was Oliver?

Why had he left her alone?

She wondered if she'd been wrong in what she'd felt from him last night, but she didn't believe that. She knew him. She'd been able to tell what he felt even if he couldn't say it. She just knew.

It didn't matter anyway. She'd told him no regrets. She couldn't second-guess anything now.

She grabbed her luggage and went around to the cottage. She left a good-bye note for her mother, thankful for the day they'd been given together yesterday to say good-bye. Then she went around to the parking area to wait for Tommy.

When he picked her up and took her to the airport, he kept up a cheerful stream of chatter that she fell in with to avoid the ice building around her heart. Tommy stayed with her in the airport until she felt it was time to go through security to ensure she would board on time. He'd given her a huge hug, told her how proud of her he was again and then waited until she was all the way through security, waving at her as she walked away until she was around the corner to her gate.

She'd been fine waiting to board the plane, been ok on the flight and had made it on the taxi ride to her new apartment, just barely, before she crumbled. She'd unlocked the door to her apartment, gone in, closed it and slowly dissolved to the floor in tears. She'd never seen Oliver Queen again.

A few days later, the Queen's Gambit went down. A few days after that it was reported that Sara Lance was on the ship. Sara Lance, whom Oliver had slept with when he was still with Laurel, his girlfriend and Sara's older sister. Her heart had shattered that day.

And then the dreams had begun.

Tears rolled down her cheeks as the memory faded again. She said a silent prayer, asking for help, for her heart to be healed, for her love to be saved. Her eyes started to grow heavy and sleep finally came, only for the nightmares to begin again.

Batman watched the bright pink glow emanating from Keiran Flannery's apartment. He'd watched her pace and workout, wondering if she realized that the jewel at her neck was continuously giving off light. She'd finally turned the light off, apparently attempting to sleep again, when something caused her to stop.

Whatever it was had caused her to be overcome with grief as she'd begun crying as she returned to the comfort of her bed. She appeared to have drifted off to sleep, when her God Stone lit up the room.

He jumped across to her balcony to see directly into her window. He'd seen many things in his time, but he was still unprepared for the sight of her, her whole body encompassed in a bright pink glow. She appeared to be dreaming. Suddenly, whatever was happening stopped. She stirred in her sleep, still dreaming, but appeared to be unharmed. He moved on, heading home for the evening. He needed to make the call.

'You are going to be reassigned, Miss Flannery. You will now be my personal assistant,' he said to her. She'd returned at 6 pm promptly to hear his response to her request.

'You will be here by 9am each morning. Unless otherwise necessary, your day will end at 7 pm,' he continued. 'I will need a list of your regular activities so that I can ensure security is provided to you. If you plan any outings, I will need to know about it in advance. Again, for security purposes,' he paused, waiting for her to say something, but she sat quietly on the sofa across from him. 'Finally, your work week will be Monday through Saturday. Any plans you may have for your day off I'll need to know about in advance, for…'

'Security purposes?' she asked, tilting her head, looking at him curiously. 'I…Why would you need such detail about the comings and goings in my life Mr. Wayne? Why would you want to reassign me to a new job? I'm just asking for your help in…'

It was his turn to cut her off, 'You know my identity. That makes you a liability to me, a security risk. To ensure my protection,' he said coldly, 'If you want my help, I need to know where you are at all times to reduce the risk you pose to me. You also need to understand that risk, and consider how much time you are willing to devote to this. We will most likely not find your friend overnight.'

She stared at him and nodded, slowly, 'I apologize, I hadn't thought about it that way. Any of it…'

'Fine. Do you agree to the terms?' he said brusquely, wanting this part to be over. He'd introduced Zatanna to Keiran as an associate she'd be working with so she wouldn't question why the other woman was in their meeting. He didn't want to be a part of the talk about Magic.

Keiran Flannery nodded, 'Yes,' she looked at him, 'Thank you, Mr. Wayne.'

He felt himself grimace. 'I wouldn't thank me yet Miss Flannery. As I said, you will also be working with Ms. Zatarra, and that work will begin this evening. I'll find you when you are done.' He ignored the baffled look on her face.

He walked out of the sitting room as Zatanna started explaining about God Stones to Keiran Flannery.

'How is she?' he asked Zatanna.

'She's…hurting,' she sighed. 'She accepted the Magic part of it quicker than you did. Much more open to it…but, she's lost some faith in love, not enough to burn out from the stone, but enough that learning her magic may take longer until she feels love again. She feels like the love she's had in her life hasn't been because of her, but because of the power from the stone. She'll be ok, she just needs time to see the love in those around her, she'll believe again.' She turned to him, 'Don't treat her with kid gloves. She's in pain, but she needs to learn strength again.'

'So, beat up on the pretty girl with the sad eyes and the broken heart. Thanks, I enjoy being the bully.' He said to her.

She laughed at him and he finally saw how much she was enjoying his situation. 'She needs you to show her how to be strong Bruce,' she said, 'You have so much in common, don't you see that? You both watched parents die at a young age, you both fell in love with a childhood friend who couldn't return that love to you and you both would do anything to save the people you love, including putting yourselves at great personal risk.'

He looked away from Zatanna, not enjoying hearing thoughts that had been bouncing through his head this evening spoken aloud. 'Will she be able to get in touch with you if she needs to?' he asked.

She nodded, 'Yes, she'll be able to call for me. Thank you Bruce.'

He nodded to her in return and shrugged. 'It wasn't like I had much choice in the matter…' he said.

She smiled at him and waved, '_oT_ _enitnatsnoC _' he hear her say, and she disappeared.

He turned and walked toward the terrace, where he saw Keiran Flannery standing, looking out over the city.

He walked over and stood next to her, his hands in his pockets. 'Are you…alright?' he asked.

She started to laugh, quietly at first, then full-throated and loud, almost a little manically.

Then she turned to him and he saw the tears falling through the laughter. He knew Zatanna had said that he shouldn't use kid gloves…but maybe, just tonight, a little mercy would be needed.

He didn't have the words to give her, but he had a small idea of how she felt. So, he did the only thing that felt…natural. He took her hand, led her to one of the benches on the terrace and sat down with her, putting his arm around her and letting her cry.

Tomorrow he would begin looking for Oliver Queen he thought darkly. Tonight his role of protector was more important. His arm tightened around the young woman at his side as her sobs wracked her body, the sound of her pain familiar to his own.


	4. Chapter 4 - CLARITY

December 2009

Keiran sat at the monitor banks, watching the GPS tracking blip on the screen to the left of her. Directly in front of her, 3 monitors showed live feed from traffic and security cameras near the warehouse where Batman was currently located. The cameras provided views of the police and emergency vehicles that had surrounded the warehouse where Scarecrow had led Batman.

Jonathan Crane, aka Scarecrow, had disappeared when Arkham Asylum and the Narrows had been devastated in the summer of 2007. He went underground and slowly built up a following, insulating himself with those who had been stuck in the Narrows, turning them into loyal followers or unwilling slaves. He never showed his face above ground, making it difficult to track him.

It was two days after Christmas and Scarecrow had decided to test the Batman-ridden waters of Gotham City again. He'd taken over the Gotham City Mall and unleashed a new version of his fear gas in the food court. The Bat Signal had flown across the sky and she and Bruce had raced to the underground lair, her to track the police scanners and monitors, him to get Scarecrow.

Scarecrow and his small group of armed men had taken off in armored vehicles, leading a high-speed chase to the abandoned warehouse. Keiran didn't like it. Something felt wrong. The release of the gas at the mall may have been to test a new sample, but it also succeeded in calling Batman out to a scenario Scarecrow had created, could control. This had trap written all over it.

'Batman,' she said into her com, 'this feels off. Why go there? It…it doesn't make any sense.'

'I agree,' she heard him growl in reply. She knew he was moving through the warehouse space, 'What's the status on the victims?' He was always concerned about the innocent victims of those he couldn't stop. It was one of the many things she admired about him. She looked at a different monitor reading off the information he requested.

'There were 27 victims total and all but three of them appear to be stabilizing. 24 of the victims had been vaccinated previously against the original version of the gas. It seemed to help them versus the effects of the new version. Medical personnel feel they will be able to recover with lots of fluid and bed rest.' She looked at another monitor with the information on the 3 patients who were currently in ICU, 'The other three patients, 2 women, 1 man, are experiencing severe sporadic seizures and violent hallucinations. Doctors are running tests on their blood to see what new additives may have been introduced to the formula. I've also created an order for a sample to be sent to a subsidiary of Wayne Enterprises so that Lucius can run tests as well. '

'Good.' He said tersely.

'Satellite imaging is showing movement on the floor above you…and, ok – 4 bodies just entered into the room on your left, two more are heading down the stairs to your right. Prepare for company.' She said.

She watched the monitors, the satellite images blurring slightly as the bodies moved. The four bodies on Batman's left entered into the room.

'No,' she heard him growl.

She saw a flicker of energy, something bright flashed through the satellite image of the building, filling her with dread. 'Batman, get out of there! Something's happening, I…' she shouted into her com.

She heard the explosion in her ear violently loud. She pulled her com off for a second, blinking from the momentary pain. She heard Alfred come up behind her and turned towards him, seeing his silver aura start to swirl as it did when he was concerned for his charge.

'What is it?' Alfred asked her.

She shook her head, putting her com back on.

'Batman this is Oracle, what's your status?' she said.

Silence filled her com. She waited for a count of ten, feeling Alfred's concern filling the silence of the room. 'Oracle to Batman, do you copy?' she asked.

No response came. 'Oracle to Batman, do you read?' she asked, trying to keep her voice calm.

'Miss Keiran, I…' Alfred started to speak.

She cut him off with her hand, silently apologizing to him for her rudeness as she tried to locate the magic in one of the talisman's she'd given Bruce for Christmas. It allowed her to sense him, no matter where he was, as long as he was alive. She'd made one for everyone she loved.

She'd begun her project after Tommy had gone to Hong Kong because a security alert he had placed on and email account of Oliver's had been triggered when someone had accessed the account from an internet café there. He hadn't told anyone where he was going he'd just taken his father's plane and left.

She and Bruce had been aware of the email account access. They'd remotely accessed the security cameras of the internet café and had found the footage to be scrubbed leading them to believe it had been a hack, but they'd kept the security alert active to track any additional attempts at accessing the account.

Tommy, not having the same skills and resources as Batman, had gone to the internet café himself and had been kidnapped by someone who had been hoping to lure Moira or Thea Queen to their location to trade for ransom. They'd been excited to kidnap the son of Malcolm Merlyn, CEO of Merlyn Global Group, but the police had arrived and rescued him.

That was the story Tommy told her when he'd unexpectedly visited for a few days right before Halloween. She'd been unable to work coms for those evenings, but when Tommy finally told her the whole story, she'd been glad he'd come to her. He'd left the next day, feeling better due to the healing magic she'd pulsed through him as he'd slept that night. She'd felt weak after, but had immediately gone to the penthouse after Tommy had left and told Bruce and Alfred the whole tale. Bruce had arranged for himself and Lucius to fly to Hong Kong the next day.

They'd returned with almost no additional information, not even a police record of Tommy's rescue, something all of them found strange. Bruce only spoke one word that he said he'd discovered: ARGUS. She'd asked him if he wanted her to research whatever ARGUS meant and he'd quickly said no. He'd told her to leave ARGUS alone, he would deal with them if need be. He'd made her promise, actually holding her hand, knowing she'd be able to feel the very high level of concern she could see reflecting in his eyes. She'd promised immediately, shocked by how worried he was about her, although she could relate. Her nights were a constant state of worry when he was patrolling while she was stuck behind a bank of monitors.

She could no longer worry about her loved ones and do nothing to protect them when she knew she had the means to do so within her. To that end, in secret, she'd purchased stones or objects that reflected the color of her loved one's aura and encased a small bit of her magic along with a small bit of their own aura that she magically removed from them into the selected item. It had been an exhausting process, completing it on her own in addition to all of her duties as Bruce's personal assistant, magical trainee and his monitor in the evenings, codenamed Oracle. She'd used a lot of her magical reserves, giving quite a bit of it away, but it was worth it.

Once a day, she pushed out a pulse with her magic to the various stones and objects she'd given away as Christmas gifts recharging the locations spells attached to her loved ones. It drained her a little more each day and she didn't know why. She'd never had problems with her magical reserves…until Tommy had told her the story about Oliver. She'd felt less pain talking about her lost lover with someone who had loved him as much as she had. For some reason, her magic had fizzled that night after she'd healed Tommy. She hadn't been able to do a spell for 24 hours after that.

At Thanksgiving, she'd gone home to Starling City. She'd felt better, normal again, for a few weeks after that, being around Tommy, McKenna and her mother. She'd felt a surge in her magic, but it didn't feel like it was at its usual strength.

Last week, her magic had begun to fizzle again, just as she was finishing her spells. For her mother, she'd made a locket with a photo them together on one side and a small turquoise stone pressed in on the other. For Tommy, Alfred and Lucius, she created watches with bands reflecting their auras of blue, silver and a bold orange-yellow. McKenna received bright orange-red stones on a gold anklet chain and for Bruce, she'd made three: a pair of cufflinks for dates and formal events with dark blue star sapphires, a watch for casual events with a dark blue band and a small, smooth, almost-flat sapphire stone that could be slipped into his utility belt, boot, glove, wherever he wanted when he was Batman.

Tonight, she could feel her magic was nowhere near a high reserve. Unfortunately, her options were limited. So, she reached out, searching for the dark blue stone and found it. He was alive. Relief flooded her, almost making her weep.

She stood quickly, 'He's alive Alfred, but that's all I can tell. Take over the coms,' she commanded him.

He obeyed, saying 'He'll be extremely unhappy to see you,' very matter-of-factly, as he sat at the monitor banks, putting his own com to his ear.

'I don't care,' she said to him, standing in front of the mirror where she practiced glamor spells. She focused and watched her hair grow down past her shoulder blades, becoming a dark auburn color. She concentrated further, ignoring the dull ache that was beginning in her chest, instead of the normal warmth her magic use provided. Her outfit changed from her jeans and button-down shirt to a sleeveless black top, a pair of black leather pants and black leather, low-heeled boots. A pair of aviator sunglasses in her hands and two baton holsters, one strapped to either thigh completed her look. She chuckled, even as her mind screamed at her to hurry. Her appearance was very similar to that of her favorite spy. Eat your heart out, Sydney Bristow, she thought.

She grabbed her batons from the weapons case and put them in their holsters as she ran to Bruce's motorcycle, a red MV Agusta F4 1078. Alfred opened the door to the shipping yards as she straddled the bike and revved the engine. She put on her sunglasses and shot into the night.

She followed the magic of the talisman, pulsing out more magic to him, hoping she could reach him before any harm came to him. She sped the bike through the snowy streets. The ache in her chest started to feel like ice, solidifying there. 'Any response from Batman?' she asked through her com.

'No, only static.' She heard Alfred reply.

She increased her speed, navigating via people's auras, shoving them aside telekinetically as gently as she could while steering the bike through the slick streets. She cleared path after path, the ache in her heart increasing rapidly.

She sped through an intersection seeing her destination ahead of her. Police barricades surrounded the area. Officers called out to her, commanding her to stop. As gently as she could, she used her magic again to clear her path, the pain growing more severe each time. She saw a straight route, leading to an incline before an open window on the first floor. Officers fired shots at her as she sped forward, ignoring their warnings. She used her telekinesis to shield herself as she revved the engine and jumped the bike through the window, skidding to a halt in the open expanse of space on the first floor, just barely able to keep the bike from crashing.

She climbed off the bike, heading towards a crumbling section of the building in the opposite corner of the space where she'd come through the window. She could see the outlines of two men through their cloudy auras, one red and the other brown, as they came around the still-crumbling wall of what appeared to be an office, shooting at her.

She ducked behind the bike, shielding her body. She centered herself, calling on her magic. She waited for a break in the gunshots and stood, pulsing bursts of energy at the two attackers, knocking 'brown' off his feet so he fell, hitting his head on the floor, his body lying still where it had fallen. The other shooter, 'red,' ducked behind a second crumbling wall, avoiding the effect of her charge. Before he could start shooting again, she leapt over the bike, running at full-speed to where he was hiding.

'Red' came back around the wall, but she was already there, pulling her baton from her left leg and cracking it down on the wrist of the hand that held his gun. He screamed in pain as he dropped the gun and she blasted him backwards with a magic-enhanced strike to his chest. He slammed into the wall and then fell like a sack of potatoes to the floor, lying still next to his fallen friend. She felt her knees start to give, almost dropping to the ground herself.

'Oracle? What is your status? You're GPS just wavered in and out.' She heard Alfred ask over her com, concern in his voice.

'I'm…fine,' she replied through gritted teeth, holstering her baton again and slowly walking to the area of the room where an obvious cave in had occurred. She passed by the office and saw four men tied there, hanging from the ceiling, all of them dazed. They were dressed as Batman. Impostors, she realized. They appeared to be unharmed, so she moved forward towards the caved in area of the room. She went around the crumbling wall her attackers had come from and it was there she saw him.

Batman was trapped. A cement beam had fallen across his legs and a length of rebar held him secured to the ground having gone through his shoulder before anchoring in the cement beneath his body. She saw his eyes were open. A trickle of blood slowly dripped down from the corner of his mouth.

'You…shouldn't be here,' he growled at her, his voice more dangerous than normal. She saw the look in his eyes, knew he was furious at her for coming to help him, regardless of the pain he felt. She didn't care.

He didn't get it. He didn't understand how important he had become to this city, how important he was to Alfred…to her. She couldn't lose him. She couldn't lose someone else she loved, especially not another man in her life who mattered so much to her heart. She'd already lost her father and Oliver, had almost lost Tommy. She wasn't losing Bruce Wayne, too.

She ignored him and raised her hand towards the cement beam across his legs. She channeled the magic, the dagger in her chest savagely strong now, tearing through her as cold saturated her body, but she held herself up on her own. The beam moved across the room, crashing into the wall opposite him, freeing his legs. Next she focused on the rebar and slid it out and into a pile near the cement beam. He cried out sharply as the rebar started moving, but kept still until she was finished.

She knelt next to him, placing her hand to his face, his only exposed skin. For her healing magic to work, she had to have skin to skin contact.

'Stop. You can barely stand,' he gasped.

She connected to him and took his pain into her, adding it to her own, feeling his injuries become hers. She wasn't concerned, that was how her healing power worked. The injuries became hers and he was healed again. She would heal within seconds through her own magic, a natural side effect of channeling an immortal Goddess's powers, or so she thought.

She looked down and smiled, seeing he had healed. She gasped, as she felt the rebar wound open on her shoulder and looked down. It wasn't healing. She couldn't breathe. Rapidly the pain in her heart became unbearable, her body began to shudder, her legs buckled as the pain radiated through her and she fell, unable to stand any longer.

'Oracle!' Batman cried out and she felt strong arms surround her, stopping her fall to the cement floor. She could hear the police starting to make their way into the building. She could feel her glamor disappearing.

'Can't…breathe…,'she whispered to him, grimacing from the pain, clenching her teeth as she forced each word out. Tears were streaming from her eyes. She felt like she was dying. She could see blood on his gloves and knew it was hers. His face moved into her vision and his eyes bore into hers, their green irises cold with fear.

'You shouldn't have come,' he said to her, cradling her to him, 'why didn't you stay where you were safe?'

'…couldn't…lose…you…'she said to his fuzzy image as the world went dark around her.

_ Bruce Wayne stared down at the female form lying in his bed. It had been almost twenty-four hours since Keiran Flannery had come to his rescue. Twenty-four hours since she had crumpled like a leaf into his arms, her appearance flickering from her dark disguise to her normal light features, a dagger of fear slicing directly into his heart. Twenty-four hours he hadn't been able to sleep or leave her side.

As soon as she'd fallen, he'd shrouded her in his cape as he'd heard the police begin moving through the building, taking only a second to shoot a small explosive charge at the motorcycle, detonating it before the officers came close enough to be hurt by the destruction. He'd needed to eliminate the possibility of it being traced back to Bruce Wayne. Then he'd shot a zip line to the ceiling, holding her shivering body to him as they'd risen to the sky.

He kept calling her name, but she didn't respond. When he got her back to the Tumbler, he saw that she was direly pale. She was losing blood. The circles under her eyes were darker than they had been the night she'd come to him to ask for his help and she was covered in sweat. She continued to shiver as he buckled her into the seat next to him and raced back to the shipping yard lair.

When they'd arrived, Alfred had carried her to the back seat of the car while he'd quickly removed his gear. Her wound had finally begun to show signs of healing. The bleeding had slowed, but it was taking minutes, potentially hours to repair wounds that normally took seconds. He'd held her in the back seat, keeping pressure on the wound. He kept her as close as he could, his lips pressed to her temple whispering her name. In his mind he continued to say a silent prayer, wishing her to wake up. Her shivering worsened as her face contorted with renewed pain. She moaned, but still didn't wake.

He carried her up the secret entrance in the hotel that opened into his bedroom inside the penthouse. He gently laid her in his bed, the first place available and removed her shirt, inspecting her wound more thoroughly. It had finally closed. Her necklace glowed, but not with its normal intensity when she used magic. Its light still pulsed, but at a haunting and slow rate, long seconds going by between each surge, the light that emanated low and dull. Somehow she was healing, yet it was taking a toll on her. She still wouldn't wake up.

He stripped her to her underclothes and carried her into his bathroom. Fully clothed, he stood with her under the shower, trying to get her to wake up. She stopped shivering under the warm water, but her eyes remained closed. He held her tight to him, his forehead resting on hers. He pressed his lips to her forehead and whispered, 'Please wake up Keiran.'

She stirred, if only for a moment. He felt her head move back. He looked at her face and saw her eyes flutter. 'Bruce…' she said. She slurred the one word and then went limp in his arms again.

He carried her out of the shower. He dried her off quickly and removed her wet undergarments, averting his eyes as best he could. He put an old, loose t-shirt on her and laid her back in his bed. Alfred had changed the sheets, removing the ones stained with blood from the wound she had taken from him.

He looked out his windows into the dark sky. That had been last night. He'd been trying unsuccessfully since they'd returned to reach Zatanna. He was hoping that one of his messages would reach her. Bruce was aware that Alfred thought that they should bring her to a hospital. He didn't think they could do anything more for her than he could as her ailment was obviously magic-related. They were both very worried about his personal assistant.

He shook his head. That was wrong to label her as just his assistant. She had become so much more than that. Keiran Flannery had changed his life. She'd led him out of the dark and into the light again. She'd given him belief in people again. She'd given him hope.

Deciding that because of the prophecy he'd had no real choice in accepting her as a trainee, she'd worked harder than any person he'd ever met. She was determined to prove that his time with her would not be wasted. Zatanna had come every few weeks at first as Keiran had begun to realize how varied and infinite her magic could be.

Love was a curious emotion with many different aspects and elements. If Keiran thought about her power as an aspect of love, she could harness her magic to do her bidding. She could enhance her strength and speed as love makes you strong and love can move quickly. She could heal others because love could mend all wounds. If there was a trite saying about love, it could manifest into a power for her. He was afraid someone would say to her that love could give you wings and he'd see the day that Keiran Flannery could fly.

She'd become stronger as she'd learned her powers. He certainly had the easy end of their arrangement. He only had to instruct, she had to learn. Learn she did though. Monotonous afternoons of repeating the same hit, same kick, or attack combination, and she never complained. The muscle memory rapidly took hold and he saw the basic moves turn into attacks and defenses as they began sparring together.

She moved like a dancer from her years of martial arts and yoga, her body trim and athletic. She was also quick from her former work in boxing and had started to outmaneuver him some in their matches because of their height difference, using hers to her advantage with multiple combinations of low attacks and athletic jumps to throw him off balance.

Recently, she'd shown an interest in learning more styles of combat and movement. He couldn't wait to see what her added interests would become with her already strong fighting style.

He moved to the opposite side of the bed. He lay down on top of the covers next to her. He propped his head up on his hand and looked at her, wishing her pale eyes would open ready to scold him for some stupid and insensitive thing he might have said during one of their training sessions. She never held back from him, she was always honest with her opinions. It was a trait he admired about her. Not many people had the courage to be honest with him, especially women. It had made him think about what he would like in a woman if he ever entertained notions of romance again.

He'd always believed the perfect woman for him was Rachel Dawes, current assistant District Attorney of Gotham City who was dating golden boy Harvey Dent, District Attorney of Gotham City. Now, he was beginning to consider that might have changed.

Keiran was aware of his feelings for Rachel Dawes, just as he knew everything about her relationship with Oliver Queen. The amount of time they'd spent together over the past two years had led to many a late-night conversation in the lair, he recalled fondly. Rachel was, he'd thought, the love of his life. She was his oldest friend and the woman who'd broken his heart when she couldn't accept him as both Bruce Wayne and Batman. She'd said maybe there would be a chance for them when he was done with Batman and could be the man she'd fallen in love with again.

Unlike Rachel, Keiran Flannery had accepted all facets of Bruce Wayne from the moment she'd met him. She had kept his secret without his even needing to ask. Rachel had kept it as well, but it was never a source of comfort for him. He couldn't say the same about the woman lying in his bed.

Keiran was a source of comfort to him all the time. She always healed his injuries from patrols, constantly giving a bit of herself to him. It didn't matter if he said no to her. She pretended not to hear him.

She made him laugh, not an easy feat, but something she accomplished almost daily. She'd make a face at him during a meeting, quick enough for no one else to notice. Or, she'd turn on music and dance for no reason at all during the day, just because 'sometimes you needed to let loose.'

She'd managed to become further involved in his Batman activities as well. She'd badgered him into finally setting up access for her to the lair under the shipping yards. He'd assigned her a security code allowing her entry, not thinking about restricting her to only when he was there.

Almost immediately, he'd begun to find her there during her off hours. She'd work on her training, both magical and physical, until he'd return from his patrols. After he'd removed his gear, they would often review whatever she was working on, finding solutions together for things she may be struggling with. He realized he'd begun to look forward to finding her in the lair at the end of the evening. He liked ending his day with her.

Eventually she'd asked to be trained on his monitoring systems. Once she was trained and comfortable with the system, she assigned herself the responsibility of being the guiding voice in his ear while he was patrolling the city. She could pull up information and switch screens more rapidly than he could now. She'd also begun logging all data from his patrols into his database, which she tweaked and tailored for more streamlined searches, creating greater and more specific results for correlating patterns in crimes. She learned things quickly and always worked to find ways to make his job easier.

When she wasn't working on additional training or monitoring his patrols, she'd spend her extra time in the lair reviewing their search for Oliver Queen. He hid nothing from her when it came to the progress of the investigation. All their leads had unraveled or disappeared, much like Queen had the morning after he'd made love to Keiran.

He clenched his teeth. If Oliver Queen stood before him right now, he would beat him to within an inch of his life. He'd hurt her so badly by his actions, she'd almost been broken by the constant visions she'd seen of him until she'd accepted her magic and learned how to control it. The dreams had stopped for the most part, but occasionally bad ones still reared their ugly head, he thought, recalling how she'd come to work one morning last February, the outline of a dragon tattoo ghosted onto her skin in dark blue, pink and purple. She had to glamor it now when she wore sleeveless outfits.

She had seen Oliver Queen being tortured, a tattoo forced onto his shoulder of a red and black dragon. No sound, just Oliver hanging from chains in a room made of metal, the same man who had been with Oliver in the last vision she'd had of him, had been the one torturing Oliver. Her left shoulder had been sore for days. That had been the last image she'd had of him. There had been no new leads, nothing…until Tommy had come back from Hong Kong…he recalled. She'd almost lost another man in her life that she'd loved. That was when her magic had started to weaken. She'd become rattled.

She'd made protection charms for those that she loved – talismans with location spells built from the individuals' aura and her magic. A magical gps so to speak. He knew the process, she'd told him about them a while ago. They'd both agreed with her being new to magic it was too much of her to give of herself to protect others.

Until you're faced with losing another loved one, another man in your life who is important to you. He reached into his pocket, fingering the cool blue stone she had made for him. Out of the three she had given him for Christmas, this was his favorite, although he couldn't say why. He kept it in his pocket constantly. He could feel the flash of warmth when she reactivated the locator spell, giving of herself over and over again.

…_couldn't…lose…you…_

The last words she'd whispered to him came back to him.

'Keiran,' he whispered to her, brushing a kiss to her temple, 'please wake up.'

Her face turned towards him slightly. He reached for her hand, limp at her side. He lay his head down next to hers, hoping for another sign from her. He closed his eyes, like he'd seen her do on many occasion, wishing he could heal her like she always healed him.

He had a feeling he knew why her magic was not working properly. She was literally out of love. She closed herself off from it, wouldn't allow love to enter her heart if it was outside of family or friends. She refused to date or entertain any potential romantic relationships.

It was time to change that, he thought. She had risked everything for him on a daily basis, had literally put her life on the line last night to protect him, when it was supposed to be his role to protect her. It was time he took a risk for her, time for him to give back. He lay there, holding her cold hand, hoping he wasn't too late.

He felt her hand move in his. 'Please don't leave me alone, Bruce…' she said in a whisper, so quiet, he wasn't sure if the words were hers or his imagination.

He opened his eyes. He wanted to tell her that he needed her, didn't want to be without her. She needed to wake up. 'Wake up Keiran, and I promise, you will never be alone. I will always be there for you.' He placed his lips to her temple again, sealing his promise with another kiss. 'Always, Keiran.'

The stone at her neck blazed like the sun had risen in his bedroom. He held a hand up to shield his eyes from it. As quickly as it had begun, it ended and his room became dark again.

Keiran opened her eyes, blinking slowly. She looked around the darkened room, a light in the far corner the only source. She sat up slowly, noting the enormous bed she was lying in, set in front of a giant wall of windows. She was at the penthouse, but this was not a room she had ever entered, suddenly recognizing the familiar scent from the t-shirt she had on, the smell of the air right before it snowed. This was Bruce's room.

The door opened and Alfred came in with a tray. When he saw her, his face split into a gigantic smile and she saw tears form in his eyes as he moved closer. She saw his aura faintly, appearing to almost be dancing. The warmth in her chest bloomed and tears ran down her face in relief, at seeing Alfred and the return of her magic.

Alfred rushed to put the tray he was carrying down, quickly moving to her side. He sat on the bed and gently took her hand in his, patting it. 'There, there, Miss Keiran. You're back with us, now. You had us quite worried.'

She brushed the tears with her free hand, trying to smile when she looked at him. He seemed so relieved, so happy to see her. 'Alfred…what's happening? Why am I here…this is Bruce's room?'

He pulled a handkerchief from his pocket and began drying her cheeks. 'You collapsed after you healed Master Bruce of his injuries. Your…normal healing abilities did not work as they had in the past. The injuries you absorbed took a long time to heal.'

Had she been asleep the whole time she was healing? 'How long have I been healing Alfred?' she asked, feeling her voice tremble.

'4 days Miss Keiran. Tonight is New Year's Eve. That's actually why Master Bruce is not able to be here himself. The signal appeared about 90 minutes ago. Lieutenant Gordon has not given up trying to find out who you are.' Alfred replied, apologies in his voice.

'What do you mean, who I am?' she asked, a nervous streak running through her.

Alfred chuckled. 'Miss Keiran, a stunning and brave woman on a motorcycle flies through a window into a warehouse where Batman was last seen entering in pursuit of the criminal, the Scarecrow. The police enter the premises when they hear gunshots only to find two men, disarmed and out cold on the floor while 4 men in Batmanesque garb are hanging from the ceiling and the motorcycle the woman rode into the building explodes in front of their eyes. No sign of Batman or the woman is found.' He beamed at her. 'Lieutenant Gordon, the Mayor, the Police Commissioner, every news outlet – they all want to know who you are.'

'Oh, Alfred…Bruce…he must be so angry with me,' she sighed, bowing her head, feeling her shoulders fall. 'I should have listened to you…'

He put his hand under her chin, lifting her face to look at him. His look was one of gratefulness and love. 'I'm glad you didn't my dear. You saved his life, although I'm sorry for what it cost you. I would never want you to trade your life for his. Please tell me you won't do that again.' He covered her hand again with his and squeezed it. 'I don't think myself or Master Bruce would manage very well if we lost you.' His lip trembled a little.

She squeezed his hand in return. 'Alfred, I'm so sorry.'

He hugged her to him briefly before patting her hand again and then turning to the tray he'd brought in. 'Now, I have brought you some homemade chicken soup and a few crackers to start you on your way back to health. Have some of that and be sure to drink the whole glass of water and the juice please. You are very pale. I'm going to run you a bath and you are going to wash the last few days away while we wait for Master Bruce to return.'

'Alfred, I should probably just go home.' She said, starting to get out of the bed.

'Miss Keiran, you are leaving this apartment over my dead body.' He said, rather sternly.

She sat back in the bed as he placed the tray in front of her.

'Now eat your soup.' He said to her and he moved into the adjoining bathroom. Soon she began to hear water running, smelling the familiar scents of lavender and chamomile. She smiled. Alfred knew everything.

She looked down at her soup and heard her stomach growl. It dawned on her that she hadn't eaten in 4 days. She picked up her spoon and began slowly eating the soup. Alfred made perfect chicken soup. She sighed in contentment. The soup disappeared quickly and she drank her water and the juice he'd brought her. It was her favorite. She felt better.

She heard the water turn off. Alfred walked out of the bathroom and walked over to her. 'Do you think you can stand, or would you like my assistance?' he asked, offering her his arm.

She moved her legs over to the side of the bed and slowly stood, using his arm to steady herself. She felt better and let go of him as she began walking toward the bathroom.

'I'll be waiting for you right here,' he said, indicating a small sitting area further along the windowed wall. 'I've left you a few towels, another spare t-shirt and a robe for you to wear. If you need anything else, just call out and I'll get whatever you need.'

She turned back toward him, touched by his care and concern. 'Thank you Alfred, I'll be fine.'

'I have no doubt about that Miss Keiran. Be that as it may, I was instructed not to leave you alone if you woke up until Master Bruce returned. Please call for me if you need anything.' He replied, smiling at her.

She walked into the bathroom, noting the large glassed in shower with multiple shower heads, the dual sinks and the gigantic, hot-tub-sized bathtub that was sunk into a raised platform in the middle of the room. Her aching and sore muscles sighed in relief just seeing the steam rising from the heated water.

She went to one of the sinks and found what she hoped was a spare tooth brush. She brushed her teeth and scrubbed her face, unhappy to see the return of the dark circles under her eyes. She looked thin. She'd probably lost a few pounds. Her skin, at least, was returning to her normal color. The warm water would help to finish the job. She stripped off the t-shirt, putting it into the laundry basket in the corner. She grabbed one of the towels and the robe left for her and put them on the floor next to the bath tub.

She dipped her toes in then slowly lowered her whole body into the warm water, inhaling the relaxing fragrant coming from the light layer of bubbles. She dunked her head, immersing herself in the comforting warmth. The water felt wonderful, the ache in her heart lessening a little further. She washed her hair and stayed in the water until she could feel herself starting to turn pruney.

She got out of the water and felt lightheaded again. She picked up the robe and the towel and slowly walked over to the counter. She finished drying herself off and wasn't surprised to find a comb for her hair, her favorite body lotion and face moisturizer. She stood up a little straighter and started humming as she began applying the lotions to her warm skin. She was starting to feel a more like herself.

Bruce entered his penthouse, his face dark as he thought about Gordon's relentless questioning about the woman on the motorcycle. He knew Gordon wasn't asking to be malicious, but more to satisfy his significant curiosity. The man wanted to know if he could trust the woman who'd defeated his men without actually touching them. And, most likely, he had a little bit of hero worship to go along with his frustration and curiosity.

Who wouldn't? A woman, dressed head-to-toe in skin-tight black leather jumped a motorcycle at full-speed through a window of a building. That was a fantasy for some men. As her actions had been in the pursuit of trying to protect others, Gordon had a modicum of respect for the unknown woman and wanted to know if she could be trusted.

Tonight, Batman had assured Lt. Gordon that if he saw the woman again, he could trust her. She was there to help. He had a feeling it wouldn't be the last time the woman would be seen on the streets of Gotham. At least, that was his hope.

He looked down at the scroll he held in his hands. The message from Zatanna had appeared as he'd been leaving the lair. He'd just finished reading the information and it had confirmed his fears. If Keiran was no longer suited to master the God Stone of Aphrodite, she would have burned up instead of fizzle out. Exhaustion shivers and magic depletion meant that the user was cutting themselves off from the fuel for their power, the source of their magic. The Goddess of Love's God Stone needed to be fed with love. Not just familial love or the love of friends, the user needed to be open…receptive to romantic love, passion, desire. He finished reading the scroll a second time as he walked into his bedroom.

He saw his freshly made bed, noticing that Alfred had just finished rolling up the old linens. His heart skipped a beat. He tried to keep the seed of hope in his heart from blooming too early.

'She's awake?' he asked.

Alfred smiled at him and he felt the huge weight he'd been feeling on his shoulders dissipate.

'She woke about an hour ago.' Alfred told him as he walked out of the room with the dirty sheets.

He poured himself a scotch and sat down in one of the room's chairs, facing the wall of windows, rubbing his face with his hands. The past four days had been hell.

He was in love with her. He knew it. He could see all the steps of how it had happened, all the pieces. Clarity often accompanies experiences of potential loss. He knew it had felt like she was dying in his arms four nights ago. He also understood she was desperately afraid of love right now. She still believed in it, still saw it around her, welcomed it for others and from her family and friends, but the thought of a new relationship involving love…she refused it for herself.

He had no practice when it came to love and romance. Hell, he'd never had a significant romantic relationship with a member of the opposite sex at any time in his adult life. Not even Rachel. Physical needs had been satisfied along the way. There was always a date who was more than willing to spend a night with Bruce Wayne, even if it was just for the notoriety of bedding the billionaire playboy persona he had perfected.

Romantic relationships were not a path he'd pursued when he'd returned to Gotham. He'd thought there was no place for that in his life's mission. Now…he hoped he'd know what to do with the one he was planning to begin.

He heard her come into the room. She walked over and stood in front of him, clean and soft, wearing another of his t-shirts. He leaned forward until his head rested against her. He felt her hesitantly place her hands on the back of his head. Slowly, she started to run her fingers through his hair. A peaceful feeling started to course through him and he sighed with relief. Tears pricked at his eyes, rebelling against the tight control he kept over his emotions.

'You almost died…' he said to her. 'I held you and couldn't get you to stop shivering. You wouldn't wake up, no matter what I tried, you wouldn't wake up.'

'I'm sorry Bruce,' she whispered and he could hear the emotion in her voice as well. 'I'm so very sorry. You weren't responding over the com. I didn't have any other choice…I knew I could save you and you're too important…as Batman to this city and to Alfred and…

'Stop.' He said. 'This isn't about Batman, or Alfred or the city. This is about you and me.' He looked into her eyes, his voice angry. They were both going to have to face their fears as this new day dawned. 'You almost died! You seem to think that isn't important…that you aren't important.'

She turned away from him.

'Do you have any feelings…for me?' he asked, more afraid than he'd been when he'd stood up to the entire League of Shadows. 'I…when I couldn't get you to wake up, I realized something about how I felt…about you. You called out to me, asked me not to leave you alone. So, I promised you that if you woke up, I wouldn't. I promised that I would be there for you, always.'

He walked over and stood behind her. He felt so unsure. He remembered the night she'd found out she was, essentially, a sorceress. His instincts hadn't failed him that night. He decided to trust them again.

He put his arms around her and gently eased her back so that she was leaning into him. He rested his chin on the top of her head. A gentle warm feeling started to flow between them where their bodies were connected.

'I'm not sure how it happened.' He started talking to her. 'When I came back from my…travels, I knew what my mission was. I understood completely what I would have to give up in this life to fulfill what I believe is my purpose here. Romance, companionship, friendship were not parts of the equation. Alfred and Lucius, well…I was fortunate that their wisdom and love could see past who I had become. Their tethers to me keep me grounded.

'Rachel's reaction to my life's new focus was not a surprise. Her rejection was what I was expecting from those who could not see the city as I could, the world as it truly is. It hurt more than I thought it would. I knew then, love was not in the cards for me, even if I tried to fool myself into thinking that we could both wait until I was done being Batman.'

He heard her laugh gently. 'Bruce, you're never going to be done being Batman. It's not something you could ever just give up. You are Batman, just as you are Bruce Wayne. They are both part of the same man, halves of the same whole.'

'Exactly,' he said, turning her so that she faced him. 'Even with all I'd seen and experienced, I didn't understand that when I first started this. You did, though. You saw it from the minute you met Batman, when you realized who I was. You knew that he was a part of me. Forever. You didn't question that.'

He framed her face with his hands, staring into those luminous eyes, now shining with fresh tears. Jesus, she was beautiful. She talked of his importance as Batman and to the city and those who loved him. How could she not see that she was just as important to those who loved her, to Alfred and Lucius, to him?

'Love is a part of you. It's the source of your power. You can't close your heart from it' He paused, 'the magic isn't burning you out which proves you still have faith in love. However, unlike my path, yours is not one that can live without love. Even the prophecy says that.'

He saw the anger flash behind her eyes and she stepped back, away from his touch, flattening herself into the windowed wall. 'The prophecy! I'm so sick of it! When does it stop controlling my life?'

He knew she wanted her voice to sound strong, but he heard the fear. He was afraid to use more words. They weren't his normal way of dealing with problems. He had to keep trying to get through to her.

He placed his hand on her chin and raised her eyes so that their pale irises focused directly on his.

'I'm standing here, forever grateful that prophecy brought into my life Keiran. You…you are everything I thought that I would be fine living my life without. You're the first thing I look forward to in the morning and the last thing I think about at night. I miss you when you aren't here,' he paused.

'You are exquisite. You have more strength in you than men twice your size and you could probably take them down with little effort. You have mastered powers that Zatanna has told me could put the most powerful sorcerers she's ever known, to shame. You take care of every single one of us without any thought to yourself.

'You saved my life four nights ago. You came to help me without a thought to what it would do to you. You had almost no magic left in you, but rode to the rescue like a hero out of one of your favorite comic books because…it's who you are. You want to save everyone because of all the love that you have the capacity to hold in your heart.' He risked a grin and saw the small smile that played across her tear-stained face.

'I know you have feelings for me and I know how afraid you are of them. You aren't alone. I haven't felt like this in a very long time.' She looked up at him, surprise flitting across her features. He leaned down and rested his forehead on hers. His hands found hers and he held them gently, tracing little circles in her palms with his thumbs. 'I want you Keiran. I've been…falling for a while. I don't know if I can ever say the words to show you how you've changed my life. It's been an incredible gift to be a part of seeing you grow, and I don't want it to stop. You won't need my training for much longer. Your powers increase daily, but you don't need anyone to guide you when that happens and you are perfectly capable of teaching yourself combat skills now.' His hands framed her face again and he moved closer to her. 'You don't need me.'

He looked directly into her eyes. 'I need you.' He said and he kissed her before she could protest. He brushed her lips with the gentlest of touches, meant to keep it controlled and slow.

The fire that exploded inside him as their lips touched changed the plan instantly. He leaned into her body, already pressed up against the wall. He teased gently with his teeth, tested with his tongue. One hand threaded through her damp hair, the other grabbed her hip and slipped her closer to him.

She opened to him, deepening the kiss, her hands balling on his chest as the internal war he knew she was fighting raged inside of her. He didn't stop, didn't want to give her time to think. She needed to know how he felt, needed to understand that his feelings matched hers.

A familiar pulse, the powerful warm sensation of her magic began to beat through him, urging him on. He trailed soft kisses along her jawline. His arms went around her, pinning her to him, not wanting to release her. It was torment to think this might be the only chance he'd have to experience her like this, to feel her, to taste her. The warmth continued to grow. His mouth continued down her neck, leaving warm wet kisses along the pulse keeping tempo there.

'Bruce, please…' she whispered.

'Stay with me Keiran,' he said to her softly, 'don't leave me, please. I thought I could be alone, thought I didn't need love in my life.' He placed gentle kisses to her eyes, her cheeks, returned to her perfect mouth. 'I was wrong.' He traced kisses along the side of her face, 'I want to be with you. Give us a chance…give me a chance.' He whispered.

He looked at her, her eyes bright from the tears that flowed from them. The smallest, most beautiful smile in the world appeared on her face.

'I don't want to be alone either. I want to be with you.' He cupped her chin again so that she couldn't look away. A heated jolt went through his body, pressed so closely to hers. His body had become painfully aware that she was completely naked under the t-shirt of his that she wore. His normal control seemed to be lost to him.

'I've blocked my feelings for you out for so long. I thought…I thought you only saw me as the girl you were forced into training, eventually your friend. I…didn't have enough faith in you, the man who held me when I was completely broken on that night so long ago…and I didn't want to lose you like I lost Oliver.' She looked at him and he saw that some of the raw pain over Oliver Queen was still there. Well, it would be gone soon enough if he had anything to say about it.

He saw her look around the room and he felt her own strong physical reaction as she glanced at the bed and then back down at her almost half-naked appearance. She looked up at him and her eyes were wide again, a slight blush rising over her face, accompanying the swollen lips from his assault on them earlier.

'Bruce, I haven't been with anyone since…' she whispered, 'I don't think I'm ready…for…'

He chuckled, 'One step at a time.' His lips found hers again. He kissed her gently, holding back with every ounce of his will. She'd said yes, she would stay with him. It was a big step. As much as his body wanted to run to the next one, his heart wasn't sure he was ready for that either.

He kissed her once more and took her hands. 'First, I think, maybe…just to put a little distance between us and…temptation,' he chuckled again, 'we should probably find something other than just a t-shirt for you to wear. Second,' he glanced back towards the bed and then tor her, looking directly into her eyes as he said his next words, 'what's happening between us will take its own path and time. I'm no more ready for that step than you are.'

Holding her hand, he started walking towards the hallway. Alfred had been notably absent during all of the activity during these early morning hours, but he swore that he smelled coffee and bacon wafting through the air.

As they started walking towards the kitchen, he couldn't suppress the lightness he felt as she walked with him. In a quick motion, he turned and picked her up, cradling her in his arms in the exact same manner as he had the night she'd fallen. This time, her arms went around his neck. He kissed her again. If it was possible, he'd never stop.

He looked at her smiling face and felt a returning smile form on his. 'Why don't we start with breakfast and see what happens next?'

She laughed as he carried her to the kitchen, their fears conquered, if only for today.


End file.
